Crash
by Apelles
Summary: The group lands in a totalitarian world ruled by magicians with a general dislike for all people without magic. For the first time ever, the group may have to deal with the permanent death of one nonmagic friend.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the original characters. 

Author's note: I must warn people that this may contain spoilers. I have read up to volume ten of Tsubasa, and though I have tried to keep this fic very neutral and free of spoilers, the knowledge I have gained by reading that far may crop up in here. Enjoy.

* * *

It was night time, and Syaoran watched Sakura shift and turn uncomfortably around in her sleep, feeling sorry for her. They had only gotten the feather two days ago and Sakura's memories kept replaying in her mind while she slept. She had not been awake for longer than a few hours before her eyes closed and she fell into a deep sleep. 

Early thatmorning Syaoran came to a difficult choice. To move on and let Sakura continue before she was truly ready, or stay and rest and pray that whereever they ended up the feather would be close by. As much as he wanted to let Sakura sleep, they had to leave the world quickly and move on.

By chance, or fate, Mokona took them to a world that had no feather in it. There were also no humans around. With the soft words of Fai whispering in his ear, Syaoran was convinced that this world was the best place for all of them at the moment.

"Think of it like a little vacation!" Fai smiled. "We have our own private, tropical island with lovely coconuts. And there is a beautiful beach over there. I have never seen such white sand!"

"You have never been to the beach!" Kurogane fumed. "No wonder you have never seen sand like that! And how do you know that this is an island!"

"I have never been to a beach that has not been frozen over, and only an island could be this pretty! But never mind, Kuro-run," Fai bubbled, "You must agree that this is the best place to rest for a bit, ne?"

Kurogane said nothing but scanned his eyes across the cost. He shook his head. "I never trust anything that I have not checked out." With that, he took off walking at a steady pace. He spent the next few hours wondering around, only to find Fai's prediction was right and they indeed were on an island.

Fai only nodded, still smiling. By now, the group had gotten used to each other, to a point that everything came almost second nature to them. Fai and Mokona teasing Kurogane were common small talk, Sakura's encouragement and optimism were always welcomed, and Syaoran's determined nature kept everyone focused.

Other things had also formed on their journey, such as each of the men falling in love with Sakura. Not anything like Syaoran's love for her, but more of a brotherly nature. Fai and Kurogane came to love Sakura like a little sister, and Fai joked around with her as such. Kurogane, on the other hand, gave 'tough' love, as she did remind him immensely of Princess Tomoyo. (One time, Sakura mentioned that Kurogane reminded her a bit of her real brother Touya. He replied with a "Yeah Right." snort. Sakura nodded happily and moved on. When Syaoran looked back on the ninja, he was almost sure he saw Kurogane wipe the corner of his right eye. Kurogane caught him staring and gave him a glare.) Mokona is Mokona, and that was all that was needs to be said.

Though everyone loved Sakura, there was a dark, silent bond between Syaoran, Kurogane, and the smiling Fai.

It was dark, for reasons they all understood, yet never voiced. All had secrets and a past that none wanted to reveal, for to do so would bring unwanted emotions toward them, normally pity. Their reluctance in revealing their past was, in all honesty, a temporary solution to something that they knew subconsciously was never going to disappear and that they would eventually have to face. In light of such a dark future, they came to enjoy themselves and slowly understood what made one another tick. This would take time, much of it, but as far as they could see, they had an abundance of it.

Syaoran knew their bond was also to provide an escape for him. Fai and Kurogane had by now pieced together some of his past with Sakura, mostly his feelings about herpast and current. Their knowledge of the price he had to pay also played an intricate part in how they treated him. They did pity him in their own little, normally unnoticeable ways. If Syaoran knew they pitied him, he never showed it. They also did try to take some of his burden, and helped him when he needed to get away from Sakura.

Sakura had, unintentionally, become a small problem for Syaoran, who was stupidly avoiding his own emotions as much as possible. Now that some of her memory had given her a greater sense of self, she started to ask questions, questions that Fai and Kurogane knew Syaoran would not want answered, nor that could really be answered, unless by the dimension witch (who they all doubted would help them with anything other than providing some supplies-and even that came with a price). It took a while before they realized they had deeply underestimated Sakura (expect for Syaoran, which explained his absence when she got too close to personal subjects). Her questions started out innocently enough, than began digging deeper and deeper for answers.

"Fai-san?" Sakura asked one time, two worlds before.

"hm?"

"What's your home world like?"

Fai cocked his head to the side, thinking. "It snows, your Highness. Lot's of it. We don't have nice, warm places where I live. But we do have art. Lots of it!"

Sakura glanced at him, her lips curving into a smile. "We have art, too. I remember that, it was hanging from the walls when it became cold at night. Large blankets and clothe designs."

"Ah, but in my home world, we had whole caverns of carved ice and snow. Large ice blocks could be turned into swans and-"

"What's a swan?" Sakura asked.

"A bird, princess." Fai replied very matter-of-factly. "A silly looking bird with white feathers that slick out all over the place. One of our ancestors loved swans, and devoted a whole ice cavern to them."

Sakura's eyes widened at the description. They were silent for a moment, before Sakura asked another question. "What's Kurogane-san's world like? Do you know?"

Fai blew his white hair out of his face. "Well," he mussed, thinking. "He said that it had four seasons. Probably lives in an forest area, someplace windy-

"Why do you think that?" Sakura asked, wondering how Fai could have guessed.

"His shoes!" Fai exclaimed, pointing to his own feet for emphases. "He wears muddy boots! And his cloak is very pretty, but mostly used for wind resistance. It is not used much for warmth, I can tell you that."

Sakura nodded her head, and was silent once more, but this time Fai noticed a difference in her posture. She leaned forward, wrapping her arms around her legs, and fiddled with her toes. Fai watched her nibble on her lower lip, fighting the urge to tell her to stop (Fai never liked it when people bit their lips, but for the princess, he restrained himself. Perhaps in a few weeks he would tell her to stop. In a few weeks, he told his nagging mind, however he knew he would succumb muchsooner.)

Though the princess never hinted at anything, Fai could tell that the conversation they just had was of no real concern to her, most likely to be forgotten in a day or so. Her real intention for talking to him was lurking behind her eyes, waiting for the opportune time to come out. Fai rose to the challenge eagerly, realizing at that moment that Sakura was much smarter than he had previously guessed. She played her cards carefully; with patience and distraction her key moves. Fai smiled to himself. _'Well,'_ he thought, _'this should be interesting.'_

At long last, Sakura asked what she really wanted to know, though she put her question in a different way so that Fai had to look for her true meaning. "What about Syaoran-kun's world? What do you know about that?"

He noted how she put in the word 'know' in her question, as if she expected him to already contain the knowledge, unlike the question she asked about Kurogane's world, which was much more vague. In truth, all Fai knew about Syaoran in general was what the boy told him, which came in extremely limited bits of information. For the moment, however, Fai decided the princess did not need to know that. "You should know that." He said, recording her reaction (the quick roll of her shoulders, the dip of her brows, the way her hand moved from fiddling with her little toe to the much more exciting activity of digging a hole in the dirt.) "Syaoran-kun comes from your world, after all."

Sakura sighed. "He doesn't say too much to me about that for some reason. He told me once that he was in Clow, but he won't tell me where. It's almost as if he doesn't want me to know."

Fai smiled, "Oh, that's good,"

She glanced up, confused. "What's good, Fai-san?"

"Its good that you aren't so naive as you pretend to be."

Sakura narrowed her eyes at him, and Fai watched with glee as she contemplated her next move._ 'I must play chess with her,'_ he thought absentmindedly. "You know much more than you let on." Fai continued.

It was not a question, but a statement. Sakura felt slight unease from Fai's ever smiling face. He truly was a mastermind, Sakura had figured that much, but she had hoped that she could mask her true thoughts. Now, she doubted if she would ever be able to hide anything from him. _'Most likely not,'_ she thought.

Figuring she had nothing else to lose, Sakura started to talk, thankful that Syaoran and Kurogane were gone. "I know that Syaoran-kun is hiding something from me."

"How did you find that out?"

"The way he answers my questions, or doesn't answer them. It's like he is keeping himself locked away, refusing to allow anyone to see him." She paused. "His eyes. He glances at me whenever he thinks I'm not looking. I have no idea if its because of something stupid I did, like trip, or if he's searching for something else."

"And that annoys you?" Fai prompted her to continue.

Sakura returned to glancing downwards, a blush growing on her cheeks. "In a way, yes. He doesn't tell me so many things, and I just don't know what to make of him. He risks so much for me, and the least I want to do is to thank him properly. Yet how can I do that when I don't really know him at all?"

All Fai said was "hm."

Sakura at last turned her whole body towards him, gripping his arm. "What are you allhiding from me? You, Syaoran-kun, and Kurogane-san, you're all hiding something." she suddenly blurted out.

Fai was mildly surprise, barely that. "Me?" He put his hand on his chest, acting surprised. "Little cute me? Hide? Goodness!"

Though Sakura knew what they were discussing was serious, she could not help but smile. She let the moment sink in, than her grin faded once more.

"Are you afraid of hurting me? If that's the case, I don't care! I want to help!" she proclaimed, still gripping his arm in an uncomfortable manner, "You all are risking so much for me, yet I don't really know who you are." Fai looked in her eyes, amazed how she believed her words with her whole heart, "Tell me, Fai-san. I can handle it. I want to help you. Please!"

Fai pressed his forefinger up against her lips, shushing gently. He patted her lightly on her head, telling her, "I can't, princess."

"Why?"

"Because I made a promise. And I have no right to tell you anything. That's up to Lil Doggie!" he grinned, happy that he finally got to use his nickname for Syaoran.

Sakura tilted her head, "What does Syaoran-kun have to tell me?" she asked.

Fai smiled. "Again, I can't tell you. Though, the answer to unlocking him may be right-," his finger lifted in midair, "under," he moved his finger closer to her face, "your," Fai's finger was an inch away from her nose, "nose!" he flicked his finger on her nose.

Sakura, not entirely satisfied and a bit of her dignity gone when Fai bonked her on the nose, did not press him any further. She got to her feet at the sound of footsteps and a loud, "You are NOT Kurogane, you stupid meat bun! Get off me!"

Before Syaoran, Kurogane, and Mokona came within sight, Sakura glanced over her shoulder at Fai, who stretched out his long arms.

"Fai-san?" she said.

"Hm?"

"...Never mind."

Fai watched her retreating back, wondering what she wanted to say.

Although Sakura confided in him, she also was guilty of keeping many of her thoughts to herself. Fai did not blame her. How awkward it must be, not to know yourself. How strange and alone she must feel, wondering why she felt the things she did.

He sighed, tracing his hand up his arm to his back, watching Sakura greet Syaoran, who, when she turned away, blushed. Fai smiled.

Syaoran was no help to her either in these situations. While it was incredibly obvious that Syaoran deeply loved the princess, Sakura had yet to realize it, which irritated him and Kurogane to no end. It irritated them also because they knew they could do absolutely nothing about it. That was for Her Highness and Little Doggie to figure out.

Fai became aware that his hand was still on his back. He shuddered, feeling very naked and exposed without his mark. _'Well,'_ he tried to distract himself, _'I should get up.'_ "Hey Kuro-puppy! Didcha' catch something for me?"

Now, two worlds andone feather later, that conversation seemed ages old. Fai watched as the princess turned around in her sleep. He poked Syaoran in the ribs, saying softly, "Shouldn't you wake her?"

Syaoran's head bobbed up and down and he slowly moved toward her.

When he came close enough, he could see the small beads of sweat that had been forming on her forehead. Feeling lousy for staring at her while she was experiencing some sort of nightmare, he gently shook her shoulder with the palm of his hand.

"Princess?"

Her eyes flew open, out of focus and disoriented.

"Princess Sakura?"

Upon hearing her name, she shook her head and sat abruptly up, breathing heavily.

Syaoran's throat felt dry. "Are you alright, your Highness? Do you want something, water or-" he glanced around the campsite, "...a blanket?" he grabbed his cloak, presenting it to her in what he hoped was somewhat like what she was used to.

When Sakura's eyes showed no recognition, Syaoran sucked in his breath. He had seen that look before.

At last, she spoke. "No, I'm fine. Thank you for worrying about me, Syaoran-kun." She smiled, and he let out his breath. "I sorry! I must seem like a fright!" She wiped the back of her hand across her forehead.

"No, no," he reassured, glad to see her back to herself. "You look fine. Very pretty." he smiled.

Sakura's eyes widened at his words, her face growing hot under his soft glaze. "...erm, thank you,...Syaoran-" she paused, "-kun."

Syaoran's eyes faded when she said that, but Sakura did not notice, for she was looking at the ground now.

"May I ask what the dream was about?" he questioned. Although they received the feather two days ago (more like escaped with it), she had yet to tell him of it, something that Syaoran hoped would become a habit. Of course he did not expect her to tell him of all her memories, many of which would most likely hurt him, yet he still wanted to know mainly because it was an excuse for her to be around him.

The corners of her mouth turned upwards, Syaoran thinking her face was very angelic at that moment. "I was with my father. He was lying on the bed, reading me a story. I held his hand while listening to his voice. We were reading something about a little girl and her sheep. Before he reached the end of the story, he began coughing." Syaoran looked down, already knowing what was to happen to the king.

"Touya came in and took me out. He played with me for the rest of the day. I did not get to see father until my bedtime, when I walked in his room. He was still coughing, yet when he saw me, he smiled, and told me to come sit beside him. I snuggled up to him, and asked him what was wrong."

Sakura's eyes became glazed with tears. "He just talked to me about a boy, and my mother, and Touya. He than let me stay up and told me stories. He talked mostly about my mother, though, and kept saying how much I looked like her. He seemed very sad, and he smelled of healing tea and sand. I think he died a while later. I don't know because the memory ends there."

Syaoran watched as she discreetly tried to wipe her tears. His voice was gone, his heart beating against his chest like a drum. He wanted to help her, hold her, reassure her, like he used to. He wanted to give her his shoulder to lay her head on and sleeve to wipe her tears, yet all he did was sit and watch her tears fall down her cheek.

"Its strange," she continued, "After the day after Touya played with me and I had already guessed what was going to happen to my father, I went on top of the roof, where Touya couldn't catch me. I remember talking out loud to myself, and crying, but than feeling much better. It's like I...ohnever mind."

Syaoran ears perked up. He remembered being on top of the roof. "What?"

"You'll find it silly."

Hesmiled, shaking his head. "No, I won't."

Sakura glanced up. "It's like Ihad an imaginary friend."

Though he had been expecting it, Syaoran felt his stomach drop. Imaginary friend echoed in his mind, bouncing off walls, returning louder than ever. He was her imaginary friend. He had been the one she was talking to. He was the one who made her feel better. He was always there. It had been him. Him, him, him!

"Thank you, Syaoran-kun." Sakura said, snapping Syaoran from his thoughts.

"For what?"

She smiled in all her glory. Her tear streaked cheeks, her flushed face and pink lips, her unruly bed-head hair, her delicate hands and long fingers, her glazed green eyes. She was beautiful.

"For listening."

She rolled over and slept peacefully after that. Kurogane appointed himself as watch guard, Fai and Mokona retired to a sleeping bag ("Mokona sleep with Fai tonight!" "Oh, really? What fun! We can stay up and think up new names for Big Doggie!" "Big Doggie, Big Doggie, Big Doggie!")

Syaoran stayed up too, though not by choice.

He watched Sakura, feeling guilt rush up in his body. He should be ashamed, he told himself again and again, for thinking of himself when he should have been thinking about her, for wanting her.

He clutched his knees to his chest, feeling sweat sting his eyes.

His thoughts of late had been turning toward Sakura in odd ways. He was human, after all, and had human needs, too. Thoughts of hearing her call his name without the ugly 'kun' attached, of not taking her hands away from him whenever he got hurt, of kissing her-

Syaoran sat up, his guilt violently shifting toward anger.

Without having any sense of what he was doing, he crawled silently on his hands and knees toward Sakura, making sure Kurogane's watchful eyes did not see him. Luckily, darkness provided the prefect cloak. Kneeling over her, he lowered his upper body until he was just inches away from her face, his lips right above hers. He brushed his fingertips over her face.

_'What am I doing?'_ the lone voice of reason rang in his head.

His heart thumped loudly against his chest, blood pounded in his ears. _'I was going to kiss her.'_

Syaoran jumped back scared away from Sakura and scurried over to his tattered, moth eaten blanket. _'I was going to kiss her."_ the words repeated themselves. Much in shock at his own actions, Syaoran curled up into a ball once more, listening in fright and cold sweat to the sounds of the night. _'Kami, what is wrong with me? Why did I do that? Oh, Kami, I was going to kiss her! I was going to kiss her...'_

It never once crossed Syaoran's mind that his actions were not of an insane man, but of someone who merly wanted affection. However, deep within him he knew that the kiss he wanted would not have been the same if one of the parties was asleep. It had been getting easier, surpressing his feelings, but there were times when he broke down and anger and rage consumed him. The goal he set out to do was more difficult than he ever realized, the sense of lost and helplessness strong. He, unlike his companions, was the most vulerable of any of them, unable to do magic like Sakura and Fai and unable to fight like Kurogane. For the moment, Syaoran, the strong and determined boy, crushed under the weight of the burden places upon his slim shoulders.

The group of a wizard, a ninja, a princess, a boy, and the strange creature that helped them all, was functional, yet at the same time, disastrous. While they were an amazing team with deep friendships, there was an ever-present cloud of uncertainty, secrets, and dark pasts. They all shared in the act of ignorance and avoidance with the knowledge that someday they would have to face their problems. Their future was dark, but for right now, they relaxed thier minds and bodies, and crashed.

* * *

Author's note: I do hope this fic is a bit more cheerier than the last Tsubasa fic I wrote, The Bath House, (...'cricket...cricket'.) ooook, maybe not... 

I wrote this in one day, mostly when the scenes with Sakura and Fai popped into my head. I was getting no work done on WoF (major writer's block) so I took a break and spent the next fiveto sixhours typing this up. I hope the effort was well worth it and I pleased my few fans out there. If you like this, or think it was complete crap (which it very well may be) please review and either say a few kind words or cuss me out (I'll be considerate of both). Heck, maybe I'll even turn this into a small story, who knows!


	2. Ch 1 News

Disclaimer:I do not ownanything from TRC! Any original charaters, however,have come from my own mind. This is the disclaimer for the whole story since it is too much of a hassle for me to remember to write it over and over (I have the attension span of a rat). 

Author's note: Before I begin, I must thank all my reviewers (12 whole reviews as I write this! I am still in shock.) Your encouragement helped me to rethink Crash and turn it into a story. This is an idea I've had bouncing around in my head since Crash began, so it is not written on a whim like my other TRC stories. With luck, that will mean it is better than the ones written on a whim. For those who like my writing, please enjoy and continue to write your suggestions and comments. To all newcomers, I welcome you.

Basic Summery : Syaoran's group finds themselves in a totalitarian world which is ruled by magicians, the head of which is run by a brutal dictator and his genius brother. When the dicator learns of the princess, everyone is thrown in a wirlwind of politics, hate, revolutions, and love.

* * *

"What the hell is going on!" 

"Sir Ka-Ka-Kazou, what can I-?"

"Get out of my way, boy! Where's that lazy ass of a magician that runs this pig circus?"

"Here, General."

"I had to interrupt a meeting with the Emperor! THE EMPORER! Does that mean anything to you, oh no, of course not, for you are a snibbling _Trick_ to be damned to the deepest depths of hell! How dare you think you deserve my time, let alone ask for it!"

"W-well, Sir Kazou, I thought this required the utmost-"

"What is that god damn noise!"

"The alarm, Sir."

"The alarm! What alarm? We don't have an alarm!"

" Afraid not, General. The alarm has been going off for the past two days. See that blob on the screen?"

"I am not a child, Trick! Get on with it before I curse you!"

"Y-yes, Sir. The blob on the screen is a new source of energy and magic in Sector 197."

"A new source of magic?Impossible! The alarm must be malfunctioning."

"That's what we thought, General. Until we switched to the visual. All the bright dots are sources of magic. The alarm may not be working, but the visual is in perfect condition."

"Impossible! No such large amount of magic could have just appeared, damnit! Such a thing can't exsist without hundreds of years in the making, and by then we would have discovered it!"

"Sir, I am only reporting strange activities, and this is not by far the end of it."

"There's more?"

"Yes Sir. We have been able to discover that the blob is really made up of three different magical sources. The strangest thing is, one of the magical sources has been recongized by the computer."

"What?"

"One of the magical sources has a connection with...ah, one moment..., here it is. Classified Object in FB220153."

"What did you say!"

"Classified Object in FB220153. We've been trying to find out what the connection between the source and the object is, but for some reason, the computer won't take any of our passwords."

"Give me all the information you have gathered on this."

"Yes, Sir! Here it is."

"Good. Now shut down this building and memory swipe anyone who heard or has seen any of this infomation-"

"WHAT! SIR, this are MY men! You can't just-"

"I can do whatever I damn well please! And in case you're wondering what you've done to desever this, it is the simple fact of being too stupid and too curious for your own good. No one, I repeat, NO ONE is supposed to know of the existence of the object in FB220153. Now you WILL shut down the building, perform the memory swipe on your men, destroy all evidence, and then report for punishment."

"Punishment? You _Bastard_! I have not done anything wrong!"

"On the contrary, _Trick_. You have disobeyed a higher ranking officer. I believe the punishment for that is...torture. Have a good day, solider."

* * *

Sakura pulled the gray curtain back with her fingers, glancing out the window behind it. 

"Princess, you may not want to be doing that," A soft voice called from behind her back, "Remember what the nice man downstairs told us."

Placing the curtain back to its original position, Sakura glanced back to Fai, her face neutral, yet her eyes flashing a mixture of anger and confusion. She studied Fai for a moment. He was sitting on the floor, playing cards with Mokona, grinning.

_Nice man?_ She thought. _Nice?_ She shuddered inwardly.

Though she knew Fai was joking, she still did not like the adjective he used to describe the man who rented them the room they were currently using.

The man went by the name of Jiro. He was a large man, almost as tall as Kurogane, and twice as wide. The little hair he had was slicked back with some oily substance. Jiro's face was gruesome; a thin, old-looking scar stretched down from his forehead, past his eye, midway to his fat cheek. A large, square shaped nose jutted out from his face, with a tiny mustache growing under it, and two black, beady eyes.

When Jiro saw the group of four walk in the building one week ago, his face cracked into a lopsided grin, showing caramel-stained teeth. His black eyes were locked onto Sakura, making her stomach feel queasy. She did not like the way his eyes slowly scanned her, as if she was a prize of some sort. When they came close enough, his large ugly hands darted out towards her, attempting to grab her. Her reflexes automatically reacted, and she jumped back, frightened. Jiro's hands would have never reached her anyways, for her three companions had, in the milliseconds the actions took place, placed themselves in front of her, protecting her.

Syaoran's movements were noticeably faster than the others, Sakura thought, but shook her head. It must have been her imagination.

Jiro's face was one of disappointment. He glared up at Kurogane, his lip curling. "What is the meaning of this?" he asked accusingly.

"She is not for sale," Kurogane sneered, understanding the situation. "All we want is a room. Do you have one or not?"

Sakura saw Syaoran's shoulders tense and he took a step back, taking her with him.

Jiro's face broke into a grin again, his chapped lips bleeding. "Ah, you want a room." He puffed out his chest at Kurogane. "Depends on what you're willing to sell." His eyes darted to Sakura once more, making her shrink behind Syaoran.

Kurogane eyes shot daggers at the man. "Did you not hear me, old man?" Kurogane's hand moved across his body and slid under his cloak, where Sakura knew he kept a sword. He drew himself to his full height and let a part of the cloak fall, revealing the hilt of the sword.

Jiro's left eye, the one unscarred, widened. "Ay, I hear you." His eyes still glanced at Sakura, than back to the man in black. "It'll still cost you."

At this point, Fai, who had remained surprisingly silent, took a strong step forward, producing a small bag from seemingly nowhere. He opened the strings at the top of the bag, than poured out its contents for Jiro to see. Gold and silver coins fell into Jiro's palm, who stared, dumbfounded, into his hand. When the bag was empty, Jiro fingers snapped closed and he rushed away for a moment, than came back, empty-handed.

Jiro led them up a winding staircase, Sakura a safe distance away from him in between Syaoran and Fai, to a large door. He stood proudly in front of it, took three keys out of his shirt pocket, gave two of them to Fai and Kurogane, than put the third key back into his pocket.

"Give me the third key." Kurogane growled his hand still on the hilt of his sword.

However, Jiro was not as moved as he was before. Jiro's hand reached behind his back and pulled out a small wooden stick.

_A wand_, Sakura thought, remembering the other worlds where such a thing existed.

Jiro waved the wand in front of Kurogane, who merely smiled, not at all worried. This man obviously underestimated their group, and Kurogane smiled at the thought of the man finding out about their combined power in less than pleasant ways.

"Safety rules, sir." Jiro said, "The owner must always have access to all rooms at all times." He glanced at Sakura again, his lip curling into his wicked grin. "In case of emergencies."

Sakura looked away, feeling sick.

Fai opened up the door, and stepped aside for Sakura and Syaoran to move in first. "Thank you." Fai said, "I do hope we can keep our arrival here secret. You see, we are working under special conditions and would hate to be discovered by anyone," his voice was light and merry, yet Sakura knew he was just acting. "-or," he added, "-by anything."

Jiro laughed. "You think I care?" he shook his head. "I got meh money, and-" he nodded towards Sakura, "if you're dead, she belongs to my business." He left them, waddling down the steps. "She's a pretty thing, too. Worth lots of money."

Sakura had wanted to throw up.

Since then she had not taken one step out of their apartment.

Not that she hadn't wanted to. The apartment was only two small rooms with one dirty bathroom. The walls were concrete, and there was only one window which showed the outside world (the outside world was not a big improvement. All the window showed was the street below them, and the gray buildings which surrounded them.) The floors were burnt and rotten, and creaked whenever they moved.

The only furniture consisted of two large beds, one in each room. The beds were in far better condition than the entire building was, for reasons Sakura already guessed. They were found to be clean after Fai did a little experiment with some liquids, however, and when compared to the floor, almost anything would do. So Sakura and Mokona took one room, while Syaoran, Kurogane, and Fai took the other. Sakura was a bit concerned.

"Won't you be sleeping on the floor?" she asked Syaoran when he started taking things out of their bag.

"Yes." he answered, not worried in the least.

"Isn't that going to be uncomfortable?" She knew it was a stupid question, for one look downwards at the floor confirmed the obvious. Yet that wasn't really the purpose of the question, anyways. She just wanted to ask to show him she cared about him.

Syaoran seemed to have caught on. "No need to worry, your Highness. My work requires much worst sleeping conditions than this."

Sakura's ears perked up. Syaoran rarely talked about his home (or himself, for that matter,) so whenever he mentioned anything, Sakura was tried to get him to spill more about himself. After a while, she noticed how he avoided her questions, which only encouraged her to work harder at cracking him.

"Where do you work?"

"In Clow." Simple, blunt, and vague. Gosh, he could be annoying.

She tried again. "Where in Clow? Maybe I know it-, I mean, maybe I remember it."

"I worked in the desert, your Highness. Hardly anything to sleep on out there, other than rock and sand. But I was with my father, so I really didn't care."

She tried to picture little Syaoran with a man who looked like him. For some odd reason, the image of little Syaoran could not come. Slightly curious at why she could not picture him when he was little, she pushed aside the thought for later. "That must be a nice memory." she said, noticing how his lips curved upwards as he thought. She liked his smile.It was warm and friendly, and took her mind off the room aroundthem."Did you have any friends with you out there in the desert?"

"Yes, I did."He paused for a moment, than added, "And do."

He avoided her eyes, just long enough to make her wonder what he was thinking. It was the last thing she remembered, sadly, for at that precise time, she felt herself being closed in upon by darkness, which than engulfed her eyes. She woke up a few hours later, in bed, with the covers pulled up all the way to her chin. She was still wearing her clothes, and sunlight was coming through the gray curtains.

It had been two days since then, and her she was, with Fai and Mokona. Syaoran and Kurogane had gone out to see what they could gather by observing the people and seeing if they could sell the clothes from the previous world. Her stomach growled, and she hoped they would bring back food.

"They won't be back for another hour or so." Fai said, puting down a red card (Mokona gave a "Whee!" when it saw this, than countered with a higher card.) "Why don't you sit down and play with us?"

Sakura sighed defeat. She hated being stuck in here, feeling restless, yet the outside world did not seem to have many perks, either._ 'Oh, well,'_ she thought, _'might as well make the best of it'._ "Sure, I'll play."

They did not know that hundreds of city blocks away, in one of the seven government towers, a man known to all simply as General Kazou had just finished his report on the strange activities going on in the city and was walking down a red carpeted hallway to the Emperor's apartments. And no one knew that this simple report would catapult a man hunt in the hours to come.

* * *

Please keep in mind I will not be updating much until my other story is finished. Think of this as a taste of what is to come. 


	3. Ch2 Words

"General Kazou, what a pleasant surprise. Especially after your hurried exit earlier this morning." 

"My apologies, Emperor Taro. The swine that called me have no regards towards respect and authority. Are we alone?"

"Of course."

"Good."

"Why ever did they call you?"

"While they may be Asses, or even Tricks, they managed to stumble upon something important, concerning the classified object."

"Really now? That is a shame, General. No one, and I repeat, no one is supposed to even know of that objects existence, much less stumble upon it. Are you growing old? Should I kill you right now?"

"I have taken the appropriate steps to make sure that no remembers ever hearing about it. The highest ranking officer, the one who called me, died in my chambers a little over an hour ago, after he memory swiped his men, of course."

"I am pleased to see you still have a sense of humor, sick and twisted as it is."

"The situation was drier, Taro, and needed fast actions. I did enjoy watching him memory swipe everyone, though."

"Move on to the point, General Kazou. What the hell caused all of this?"

"Most strange, Emperor. Before I killed the officer, he handed me all of his information he gathered-"

"I am growing impatient..."

"Yes, of course. Apparent over the last two days there has been an enormous amount of magical energy in one of the poorer sectors of the city. It appears to have just appeared out of thin air!"

"Don't waste my time with the impossible, General. If this is your humor-"

"My Emperor, I am your most loyal servant and my tongue speaks nothing but the truth to you. I saw it myself on one of the security screens. A large blob of magic made of three different sources, in the city."

"Three different sources!"

"The worst of it all is that one of the sources was recognized by the computer."

"Recognized..."

"One of the sources (I presume the strongest) has a strong connection with the classified object."

"Emperor? What do you think-"

"General Kazou, take your men out into the city and capture the sources. I don't care what you use, how many die; just get all of the sources! Alive or dead! Than make sure no trace has ever existed of the sources or the object. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Emperor Taro, but why-"

"Don't ask pointless questions! Follow my orders to the letter! Than report back to me! Now leave, and let me be by myself until you get back. Tell no one to come to me and cancel the rest of my appointments. Good-bye, General."

"Yes, Sir!"

You can come out now, brother. General Kazou is gone. I trust you heard every word?"

"Of course."

"What do you think of it?"

"I can't say for sure, Taro, but from what the general is describing, it sounds like the owner of that feather has come to claim it."

"My thoughts exactly. What shall I do?"

"At the moment, nothing. We can't be sure what it is we are dealing with, that damn General Kazou destroying all the men who were there when the problem began. I could have used them."

"He was acting in my best interests."

"His interests, not yours. Don't be fooled, Taro, Kazou is only obeying you so that he can get another promotion. He'll get tired of you someday."

"Yes, yes, then we kill him. I know, I know. What shall I do tonight?"

"Don't leave this apartment for a few hours, than attend dinner. I am sure by then General Kazou will have created a mess out of this situation and you will need to set rumors straight. Dine with some of the richer families, the ones who confidence we are losing. Don't stay long, though, be sure to come back in time to hear what worthless shit Kazou has uncovered."

"And what will you be doing?"

"I shall be dinning with you, of course, me being your wonderful Prince Saburo, the brother of the Emperor. While you are with the families, I will go around the room, quietly spreading lies of you looking for a queen. With luck, 'news' of you seeking marriage will be common gossip among the political parties in a week from now. Than the parties, all bloodsuckers, will be playing nicely and giving heaps of credit to the Emperor, in hope that you marry one of their whore daughters."

"Ah, Saburo, your mind still amazes me. You can play with people like they are nothing but pawns. But what about this most recent disturbing news?"

"The three new magical sources? Impossible. They don't exist. If General Kazou actually captures them (I do hope he doesn't kill them. They sound interesting, don't they?) Then I shall deal with them."

"I doubt Kazou will like that. He doesn't take to you, does he?"

"That's because he has a bit of a brain, even if he is perishable."

"At least he is not a genius like you."

"No one is."

"True. However, behave yourself tonight. While most of the families are dumb sheep, there are a few wolves. Remember the Daidoujis?"

"Whatever do you mean?"

"Don't play, it's disgusting."

"I used to be your cute baby brother."

"That was before you scared half the party. It will be a miracle if we can trick them into this."

"Scared of me? What a funny thought"

* * *

Syaoran tilted his head backwards, his face showing his clear amazement and deep puzzlement at all that was around him. 

The buildings were tall. Huge, gigantic, colossus sized builds stretching their concrete bodies into the sky and disappearing into gray clouds. They seemed to be reaching for the heavens, never ending. Very single building for blocks and blocks seemed to be like this. All frighteningly tall, all reaching, all competing with one another and everything on this planet. People were tiny dots in the distance, unimportant and insignificant with compared to the concrete giants surrounding them-- no, no, that's not it-- closing in on them. Swallowing them up in their shadows that covered the ground in an almost eternal darkness.

Syaoran unconsciously gripped his bags harder as he looked.

When he first stepped outside in daylight, he was beyond shocked at the sight in front of him. His mind automatically sprang in overdrive, going through every single book on ancient and modern buildings he could remember. It was impossible, his mind argued feebly, simply impossible! The buildings were too tall! Simple physics and a general knowledge of construction backed up his reasoning, saying that buildings can only reach so high before they crumble. The higher up they go, the deeper into the ground the foundation goes. However, the foundation and the height both have limits, limits that can't or should ever be tested.

Yet all around him was evidence to disprove this. In front of him, behind him, to his left, to his right, there were buildings that reached the clouds, hundreds of stories tall. How in Kami's name was this possible, Syaoran's physics gave no answer, and in all truth gave up trying to. By now, there were so many things that he had seen and done and never believed or thought possible. It was much simpler and easier to just accept and move on.

"Yo, kid!"

Syaoran's head turned at the sound of his nickname. Kurogane was standing behind him, one eyebrow quirked up.

"Are you done looking? We'd better up before that idiot starts calling names out the window."

Syaoran nodded and followed a step behind Kurogane as the taller kicked the door open. The owner of the apartment house was not sitting at the desk, Syaoran was glad to see.

"Kurogane-san?" Syaoran said.

"mmm?"

"Have you noticed anything strange about this d-country?" He almost said dimension, but stopped himself just in time. The four travelers never mentioned anything about other worlds, unless they were in the presence of someone who knew about the Space Time Witch. They hardly ever found anyone on the worlds they visited, so it was not a habit. Alone, the four talked about other dimensions, but with limitations.

Kurogane did not slow down, or even look at Syaoran as he started up the stairs to their rooms.

"This is not a friendly place, if that is what you mean." he answered. "There were hardly any people out on the streets, so either there aren't that many left, or someone has a mighty lot of power around here."

"The buildings are too tall."

"I didn't realize. They all look tall." By _'they'_, Syaoran knew Kurogane meant buildings from other dimensions where there was large industry. Kurogane's world apparently had no really tall buildings, so it was natural that he would not automatically notice a height difference between the buildings of worlds.

"Do you think that has something to do with Sakura's feather?" Kurogane asked, stomping on the second floor and turning left to go up the stairs to the third.

Syaoran frowned. "Maybe. Mokona said earlier that there is so much energy everywhere it is hard to pinpoint whether the feather is even on this world."

"What do you plan to do?"

"Same as the last time." Syaoran said. "I'll take Mokona around and hope it picks something up. If not," he shrugged, leaving the sentence unfinished.

Kurogane sighed and mumbled, "dumbass meat bun."

When they reached the seventh floor, Syaoran's gripping his bags harder, the door opened to a lovely sight.

Sakura was standing in the doorway, a smile on her face. "Can I help?" She asked.

Grateful, Syaoran nodded and handed her one of the bags. Kurogane waited until the teens were inside the apartment before glancing side to side down the hallways and to the stairs. Twisting its metal lock into place for good measure, he than shut the door. His skin tingled, a sensation he found most irritating and gave off a sense of foreboding, like something bad was going to happen very soon.

It was only than that he turned around and shouted a, "What the HELL!"

When he left with Syaoran this morning, the rooms were as bare and ugly as when they arrived. Now, however, there was one round table, four chairs complete with matching pillows, two small rugs, one tiny single person mattress, and one off-white mug with a _'I Luv U'_ painted in red on it.

Syaoran, being the unobservant idiot he always was when Sakura was around, finally addressed the situation. "Fai-san, where did you get all of this?"

Fai did not look up from the card game he was playing with Mokona. "The Witch sent us all of this. Isn't that nice?"

Fai knew fully well the effect this would have on Kurogane, who hated the witch with a passion. He smiled smugly, also right in front of Kurogane.

"Nice, my ass. What did you have to give her?" Kurogane said, throwing the pillow at Fai. Fai dodged it easily, still grinning.

"Oh, nothing much. Remember that gold thingy we took?"

Kurogane rolled his eyes skywards. Of course he remember the gold thingy. He was the one who stabbed the guy who ran off with it (not enough to kill him. That would be such a terrible waste of a good technique). Sakura's feather was inside of it, driving the guy mad with its immense power. He said nothing, knowing Fai would continue as if he hadn't asked a question at all.

"We traded it," Fai said, pausing to lick his finger to pick up a card that was reluctant to leave its nest, "As it turns out, the Witch was having that boy clean out the shop, or whatever she owns."

_'A fair trade',_ Kurogane thought, than hated him-self for thinking of it. That damn witch! Being in her presence in that Japan was once more than he ever wanted. She had quite an effect on him. Proof being how easily her words came to his mind months after he had last seen her in person. Oh, how he hated that, being so easily forced to comply with her will. Not that he really had any chance against her, even with his blessed sword. Her power was evident, suffocating even, smashing his to bits. Kurogane hated her and admired her.

As always, Fai seemed to know what he was thinking, for he said, "That gold thingy much have been valuable, for her to trade us all this in return. And you're the person we have to thank, Kuro-rin!"

Kurogane said nothing, just stomped into a corner and sat, closing his eyes.

While all this was happening, Syaoran and Sakura were making pleasant conversation. "What did you see?"

"Oh, lot's of things, Your Highness. Do you need help opening that?"

"No, no, thank you. What is this world like?"

"Too tall buildings."

"Hoe?"

"Never mind."

"Okay."

" It is easy to find your way around here. Most of the signs are in pictures."

"No words? Coffee?"

"Yes, please. No, not many. Mostly pictures. Very strange, indeed."

"Is it cold outside?"

"Not much, really. This might be like spring or fall. Can I cut that for you, Your Highness? I have a knife."

"Yes, thank you. Would you cut up this, too?"

Fai listened to their talk with wonder. They got along wonderfully, though they were confined to the roles placed on them: the commoner and the princess. While they had graced the lines of friendship long ago, they were not yet comfortable enough to leave the cast system to explore any other levels of that friendship. Of the two, Sakura-chan seemed more likely to suggest anything at all, Syaoran being the near sighted thick headed person he became in situations he like this.

But at the same time, Fai could not blame them. Both in Syaoran and Sakura's heads conflicted and contradicted thousands of years of history and customs. It was not that the boy couldn't accept something unusual (practically all of the journey through dimensions was downright strange) but it was his own moral and high standards that he held himself to. If in any way he felt that he had not earned the right to do something, or _love_ someone, he would not until he proved himself. She was a princess. He was a commoner. No small task to overcome when there are thousands of years in which princesses only married princes, and commoners only married commoners.

Yet now, as Fai looked on as the two teens prepared something to eat, it was so easy to forget who they really were.

A pang of uncertainty hit Fai. Fai shushed it down within him, suppressing until it reacted a controllable level. He was happy.

The air in this world was humid with hatred. Uncontrollable, ugly, sick hatred. It pulsed through alleyways and streets, claiming everything. The origin of it all was the heart of the city. And for some reason, Fai liked it.

In fact, he loved it.

It was funny how much he liked the city, even when it contradicted against his own character. He was peaceful and quiet, whether this city was bloody and screamed revolution. He liked the tall buildings, the blue skies, and the grandness of it all.

And he really liked the hatred.

It was the hatred of this place that he liked the most. His hyper senses had skyrocketed since they landed here, because of all the wonderful hatred. It gave him comfort, knowing that he would never have comfort in this land. He loved this world because he would never relax here, he would never succumb to that feeling that lulled him into believing he was safe, even for a moment. It would never happen here, and he was glad.

And because of that fact, he knew they would be leaving soon, no matter what. Everyone senses were on alarm, making them all jumpy. While Syaoran and Sakura would evidently become accustomed to this world, just a little bit, he knew himself and Kurogane could never be. He was sure Sakura already noticed it, which was why she was trying so hard to help him. Syaoran, being so set on Sakura's feather, would not notice at all for a while. Eventually, he would wise up and they would move to another dimension.

_'Hurry up, Syaoran-kun,'_ Fai thought, _'Hurry up and find that feather. I love this place too much.'_

* * *

"Where are you going?" Sakura asked, alarm evident in her voice. 

Syaoran did not look at her, continuing to pack a small bag. He had already put in currency, a compass, his watch he brought over from five dimensions ago, and was reaching for a map he took from a newsstand. Sakura's foot came down on the map, barely missing Syaoran's fingers.

"Syaoran-kun, are you going to search for my feather?"

Syaoran looked up in her green eyes. He hated doing this. "Yes." he answered, preparing for what he would say to Sakura's next statement.

As predicted, Sakura face remained a look of worry, but her eyes flashed different emotions. Anger, happiness, stubbornness, determination, and thankfulness, at all once. Syaoran recognized them all. _'Ah, Sakura,'_ he wanted to say, _'do have any idea what your eyes tell? Do you have any idea at all? They exploit you. Reveal your feelings, your emotions. They reveal you. And I am a liar, for I pretend not to notice. Kami, stop starring at me, damn-it'._

"I want to come with." she said, "I want to help."

"No."

"Why?" she retorted, a bit bolder than before. "I won't be a bother. I'll carry Mokona. I've been staying awake all day long now. And you can't say that it is too dangerous." At this last sentence, she smiled, trying to lighten the stiff mood.

Syoaran's mind was screaming no. This world really was too dangerous. The fact that all of the signs were pictures, not words, alarmed Syaoran greatly. Tall buildings and cities meant people had to have learned math to read and pass information down hundreds of people who build this colossus city. The signs told him that most people were illiterate, the pictures telling them where to shop and buy clothes. Why? What kind of government would not promote literacy?

Sakura pouted. "Come on."

Syaoran still wanted to say no. He could not tell her why, though. He saw how anxious Kurogane and Fai were to leave, however quiet they were. They have been through enough; they do not need to know this. But this is about Sakura's safety.

"No, Sakura-hime. I can't let you. It's not a good world out there. I am sure there are people like Jiro-san all over. You're gonna stay here with Fai-san."

Sakura's eyes once again flashed anger at the sound of Jiro's name. But she did not back down. "I have not been out in two whole days! I don't care about J-that man! I have to do something; I can't just sit here and let you do all the work. I feel so...so...useless."

It was one of the few times she referred to her helplessness in order to bring home a point. Syaoran stood his ground, but he was getting weaker. He shook his head.

By now, Sakura would have normally backed down, even though she had a higher status than him. But today, she would have no such thing. She was not clueless. She knew this world was dangerous, but that was why she wanted so much to help. Syaoran has a habit of getting hurt everywhere he goes, and shewas normally the one to clean up his wounds. So why not be there right when it happens if, Kami forbid, something _did_ happen?

When she saw his resistance, Sakura let pent up air out of her lungs. She stared into his amber eyes. Oh, how she wanted to earn his respect and trust. She felt like such a foolish little girl when compared to him. He was strong and driven, how could she ever measure up in his eyes? How could he ever see her in a different light? Why can't he see her? Why he is the way he is? Why did he do what he did?

The question that nagged at her mind the most was the simplest; why is he helping her?

It was along this trail of thoughts that led Sakura to say the next thing on her mind.

"They are my feathers, Syaoran-kun. _Not_ yours."

The words were knives thrust into the heart of the tension. They were cruel and merciless, careless and mean. They rolled off her tongue before she could control herself, and than were out in the open. Sakura instantly recognized her mistake and raised her hand to her mouth to stop herself from saying anything more.

But the damage was done. Syaoran's eyes widened at the remark. The venom in her voice stabbed him. The pure, raw accusation of her words. The wounds created by her words bled and Syaoran took a slow step away from her, speechless.

Numb. Her words left him numb. And he did not know why.

Sakura watched with horror the transition that came over Syaoran. His face seemed to grow pale, less human. _'No,'_ she wanted to say. Her mouth seemed to be stuffed with cotton. _'I did not mean that! I should be thanking you for all that you've done, not insulting you!'_

Syaoran head nodded up and down slowly and he mumbled something, heading toward the door.

And he was gone. Sakura knew that. He was not physically gone, but it hurt just the same. He did not look back to see if anyone was following him, he continued placing one foot in front of the other in a mechanical way. He walked out the door.

Fai and Kurogane, watching all this from the side of the room, did not say anything at all. They merely watched in fascination at the drama, each saddened, but not entirely surprised, be the trauma of this journey. It was over for now, yet everyone suddenly had a lot to think about.

Sakura followed behind Fai, very much in shock. Fai and Kurogane glanced to and fro between the teens. They walked out the door in silence.

All the while Sakura was shouting in her mind, _"I'm sorry, Syaoran-kun. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I should have never said those words! I'm sorry!'_

If she had been listening, somewhere in the back of her mind another part of her was whispering something else.

_'What I said was the truth. So why am I sorry?'_

It was one of the few times that the group ever fought. It was rare that they had something to fight about - that is, when they weren't hiding themselves behind dark veils of secrecy. As much as they were happy, the true reasons for this journey had yet to fight their way up, and as much as the group avoided it, it was a losing battle. Those secrets and pasts and futures were all taking a center stage within the coming months.

If fate were kind, it would leave these four people alone. However, fate, or coincidence, never cared about kindness or sadness. What would happen would happen, and with any luck, it would be without too many deaths in the process. Though, fate can't count on that...

* * *

Author's note: I am most dissappointed at my nonactivity at fanfiction for these last few months, so I posted this. Please be kind with reviews, and do not beatme uptoo much for my delay and short chapter. 


	4. Ch3 Hunted

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the original characters of TRC. However, any new characters are my own. Thank you. 

Author's note: Guys, please note the rating. It's there for a reason. There are some scenes in here that might not be real pretty...

Author's note2: Lucky Charms goes great with this chapter. Have fun and don't get the keyboard messy.Cheers!

* * *

"General Kazou, what are your orders?" 

"Fan out through the streets, condemn all people that you see and bring them in for cross-examination."

"Everyone, Sir? _Everyone?_ Do you have any idea how many people you are talking about? Why, in Sector 101, there is over-"

"Did I stutter?"

"What in Kami's name are we looking for! A shape-shifter?"

"We do not know what the suspects look like, so we will question everyone out on the streets. The swine need to learn curfew anyways."

"May I at least know what this is about, General?"

"So sorry, classified information. Emperor's business."

"I have over 300 special service men under me. Their safety is of a great concern to me. And I don't give a damn whose orders you are working on. If it has something to do with my men, I need to know."

"I could have you tortured for that little speech you just made, trick."

"So even high army officers like yourselves use common slang? Beside the matter, General. What you are asking me to do is near impossible. You expect me to send out three hundred men in order to attempt to capture three undisruptive suspects who are somewhere between Sectors 100 and 238 with no knowledge of what this suspects are even capable of by the 28th hour tonight!"

"Since you have already told your men about this emergency mission exactly,...23.00 minutes ago, the other option is to have all of your men memory-swiped and sent home to their families drooling with the mind of a five month old. Your choice."

"If THAT is what you call a choice, you are even more SICK than the rumors!"

"Wrong, trick. I am much worse than the rumors."

"..._Damn_ you!"

"I am so pleased you will do it. Be prepared to leave within 20 minutes."

"You are a BASTARD!"

"Good, that means I get another raise..."

* * *

Jiro was at the front of the desk when they came down the stairs. He face showed suspicion, but Fai's money must have been on his mind, for he said nothing. Once they left the building, they did hear him mutter from the crack in the door, "If someone's following you, don't come back." 

Syaoran raised his eyebrows, looking over his shoulder at Fai and Kurogane. Their faces were perfectly normal; Fai was grinning to himself as though he was remembering some jest while Kurogane's face was as stony as ever. Syaoran did not look at Sakura.

They walked around for an hour. Since this was the first time Sakura had walked around in daylight, she was curious enough to stop the silence that had been suffocating everyone's words since they left the apartment.

"There are only pictures. No words." She said when they came to another sign. "This is not right."

"Woo, this place sure is big!" Fai commented, in an attempt to keep conversation up. "Kuro-pong, when you and Lil Doggie went out this morning, did you ever see anything green? Like a plant? There are no plants around here."

Kurogane eyes narrowed as he glanced around him. "No. This place gives me the creeps. The city just seems to go on forever."

"They must have some country side somewhere to make crops and such." Syaoran said.

"Maybe people here use magic to make their food." Fai added.

"Or maybe most just starve." Kurogane added, and the conversation finished on that happy note.

They continued walking around until it became dark, every so often stopping and asking Mokona if it felt anything. Each time the response was the same. "Too much energy here. But there is something in that direction."

Syaoran could tell this saddened Sakura greatly. Her shoulders visibly sagged and her face fell. Yet Syaoran did not do anything, not even a simple word of comfort. He was too wrapped up in his hurt pride to even give her the acceptance of the apology she had been offering. Not even to tell her that he had long ago accepted her apology and was not really mad at her, but at himself. Her words still rang in his head, taunting him by repeating themselves over and over.

_"They are my feathers, Syaoran-kun. Not yours."_

_How could she think of sure a horrible thing!_ On the outside, Syaoran looked every bit as together and functioning as always. In the inside, he was screaming, _how dare she! How can she say that! How could she!_

Slapping his feet on the concrete much harder than necessary, Syaoran's mind ran through reasons on why Sakura would ever say such a thing.

Was it that she was still confused as to his importance here in the group? Sakura had heard once or twice Kurogane's and Fai's reasons were traveling between worlds (they did not elaborate much, of course, but enough to figure out the basics), and she knew full well of her own reason, yet Syaoran did not really have any reason, or excuse, that explain why he was traveling with them. From Sakura's point of view, he was just there, getting her feathers for her for no reason. It was only natural that she would question him sooner or later.

At least, that is what Syaoran kept repeating to himself. While he did think of this earlier, to actually have it come into existence was difficult to handle. It hurt him much more than he thought possible.

Even worse so, it might even be true.

Syaoran loved Sakura more than anything, and would gladly give her his life. He never needed to remind himself; it just was, without question, without reason, without anything. He loved her. Period.

However, the passage of months on this journey came up with another, slightly twisted reason as to why he was doing this. In truth, the reason was in his subconscious, praying on his thoughts as they came until it grew in strength to finally be recognized by the conscious part of him. The reason was simple; he wanted more. (Amazing how all of his complex thoughts and emotions originated from one basic human need!)

He wanted to be more than just a commoner in Clow's Kingdom. He wanted more. He saw the princess among the princes' and nobles, knowing they were important. Their presence reeked of importance. For years, he never minded it, never cared about it at all, until on morning he saw Sakura with a handsome son of a noble from a far off land. This was two years prior to her feather's fleeing. In the pit of his stomach, he felt sick. So from that day forward, though he loved his work, he wanted just a little bit more. Just a little bit more.

It was the nasty greed that grew in the stomach of men and boys. The strive to be better. Syaoran never liked to show off in front of anyone, though athletics came easy to him, and never challenged anyone's position unless motivated by some injustice done to someone else. He liked his life, his home, his world. But that did not mean that the greed was any less. It just meant Syaoran had learned how to control such emotions far better than anyone his age.

His control seemed to slip and he wanted to be greedy when it came to someone he loved, like Sakura. He wanted her with him, however limited that would be. After all, didn't his father tell him that he deserved some happiness? If the happiness was a person, isn't he entitled to some? And what, pray tell, would make her sit up and take notice that he was someone worth of her time and love?

Now suddenly, he is doing more than he ever imagined. He _is_ important to this group. His primary goal always will be Sakura, but now his subordinate goal had come alive and fueled a fire in him. Syaoran is more. More than he ever could have been in Clow. His father would have been proud. And maybe Sakura would take notice.

So in a way, she was completely right. He was doing this for himself, and not just for her. He was doing this to make himself feel more. More to Her Highness, more to others, more to his father,and most importantly, more to himself.

Mokona jumped on his shoulder, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Mokona, are you alright?"

The white puffball shook. "Something is coming this way. Lots of energy. Not good."

If there was anything to get everyone on high alert, that was it.

Syaoran's muscles tensed and he unconsciously took a step toward Sakura. "Your Highness," he said, "Get behind me."

Sakura was hesitant. She opened her mouth once, thought about it, than closed it. Than she said, " Syaoran-kun, I am so sor-"

"It doesn't matter right now, Your Highness." he interrupted her. Syaoran knew what she was going to say. She will always be Sakura, sweet, kind Sakura.

"What's that noise?" Kurogane asked.

A quiet rumbling alerted them to the distant sounds of ...something. It was coming closer, the ground vibrating underneath their feet. There was a rhythm to it, making their hearts beat louder and louder.

In answer to Kurogane's question, shapes appeared at the end of the street block. They were black andunidenitfiable in the darkness of the shadows, staying close to the walls of the buildings. More swarmed over, blocking the middle of the street. The vibration of the ground intensified ten-fold. And they were heading straight for them.

"GET OUT OF THE STREET!" Kurogane commanded, grabbing the collar of the person closest to him (Fai's) and turning a sharp right into an alleyway.

Syaoran snapped awake from the image he was watching and spun on his heels, grabbing Sakura's arm in the process. Not waiting to see if she was ready or not, he took off running, tugging her arm. "Run, Princess, RUN!"

They bolted into the direction that Kurogane and Fai went. Syaoran's grip tightened on Sakura's wrist. Mokona held onto Sakura, stuffing itself in her coat. Through the pitch-black alleyway they ran.

Syaoran could only see the flapping of Fai's coat since it was white. He heard Kurogane's footsteps, but since he was in front of Fai, Syaoran could not see him.

Adrenaline pushed him harder and he pumped his legs up and down faster, trying keep up with the two adults, all the while holding on to Sakura's wrist. The mouth of the alleyway was visible now, a street light at the end of it. Kurogane and Fai had almost reached it.

Suddenly, Syaoran became aware of Sakura running along side him. Mokona was poking its head out at her collar. He wasn't tugging her anymore. In fact, he doubted he ever was. She had always been the faster runner of them, even as child. She had kept up with him and while his breathing was beginning to labor, hers' was still even.

Syaoran dared a glance back. Sure enough, the shapes were following them, gaining. Syaoran looked forward again. They were closer to the mouth. And Sakura was still running along side him.

"Run ahead." Syaoran gasped, not wanting to waste his breath.

"No!"

What the hell are you thinking? he wanted to ask, but a sharp pain stabbed at his lungs. With a sickening pain in his stomach, Syaoran realized why. She didn't want to leave him. She could easily run ahead of him, he knew that. And yet she wasn't.

Damn her for being so kind! It was going to get her killed!

Syaoran's breath was now coming in short grasps. He was tired from today, from the fight, from not accepting her apology, from everything. Sudden wisdom sprouted in him, he knew he would not make it. He would fall, and soon.

They were finally at the mouth of the alleyway, another street. Kurogane and Fai were on the other side of the street, in front of a broken down building. With swift movement, Syaoran put his hand on Sakura's back, giving her a rough push forward.

"I'll divert them! You go on!" He rasped.

Sakura stopped dead. Her eyes flashed no.

"Go on!" He shouted, than took off down the street, not waiting to see if she listened or not. _'She will go with Fai-san, Kurogane-san, and Mokona. She'll be safe._' he thought, a smile forming at his lips. _'She'll be safe'_

* * *

Sakura watched him run off in the opposite direction that he ordered her to go in. She could not just leave him! She had to follow! Just when she was about to take off after him, a gruff hand pulled her back. Sakura struggled, thrusting her elbows backwards into the person's ribs. A pleasing grunt was heard but the person's grip only tightened. 

"Damn, kid! Stop it!" Kurogane said, pulling the princess backwards and into the broken down building. "Will you stop that!" He said as she continued to try to jab her elbows into him.

"He's going to get himself killed!" Sakura said, her voice cracking as she did so, "We have to go after him!"

Kurogane grabbed on to Sakura's fists to stop her assault on him. "No, he won't."

"How would you know!", panic in her voice was evident.

In response Kurogane pulled her harder into the abandoned building. Fai took Mokona. They crawled under the broken concrete, trying to get away from the street as quickly as possible.

"We can't just leave him!" Sakura was on the edge of tears, her voice quivered.

"Do you think getting yourself killed is going to help anything?" Kurogane snapped back, pulling her harder. "Do you think that will help him? You're a fool if you do!"

The whole building vibrated as the things pushed out onto the street. Sakura could hear their feet pounding the ground, searching, yearning. Hate was in the air, all over, searching, hunting.

Syaoran was out there.

They crawled deeper to a staircase leading down into darkness. Kurogane was distracted for a split second as he tried to see the first step down. It was all Sakura needed. In a flash, she snapped out of Kurogane's grip and speed off to the street.

Sakura ran through the building, not entirely clear what she was doing; all that she knew was that she had to help Syaoran. If that meant using herself to distract them from him, that is what she would do.

As she crawled back under the concrete, she vaguely heard Kurogane, Fai, and Mokona shout after her.

Her last thought before she came out on the street was, _'I'm sorry for leaving you, but I won't let him do this'_

* * *

By the time he dared another glance over his shoulder, he was an unknown number of blocks away, having no sense of where he was going or what he just passed. 

His body was falling apart. He was too weak, from not eating and troubled sleep. So it was inevitable what happened next.

Syaoran fell, his head brushing up on the street, scrapping some skin off his forehead. Using his body's momentum, he rolled, tucking in his arms and legs. He was spinning too fast however, and crashed into the side of a building before he could stop. A rock hit his ribs and he cried out in pain.

_'No time to stop. Get up, get up, get up.'_ a panicked voice repeated in his mind.

He thrust his arms underneath his chest and pushed upwards, bring his knee up at the same time. Once more, he ran, using the little energy he had left into keeping his legs from giving out. Oh, the pain was great. His muscles screamed out in agony at the pace he was keeping, begging him to stop, threatening to collapse. Syaoran bit his tongue and ignored it.

As he ran, he heard voices coming from behind him. "Shit, that kid's fast! Curse him! Curse him!"

Syaoran pumped his legs harder. He could not let them catch him, not now, too soon. Must keep running, must keep running, must keep running. The voices were louder, gaining on him. Syaoran turned sharply into another street, his ankle twisting. In a second, he was spinning again, the ground and sky meshing into one giant twirl of colors.

"Yes! He fell! Curse him!"

Syaoran felt something hot hit his back, propelling him up into the air. The air in his lungs escaped and he could not breath. The trip to the ground was short and much more painful than going up. His whole side slapped the concrete first, pain numbing that whole side. Strangely, his whole body was numb.

Syaoran could do nothing but stare up at the sky, waiting for his captors to come. He did not have to wait long before a pair of black, shiny boots came into his field of vision. A large hand reached down and grabbed the cuff of his collar, lifting him up into the air as though he was a doll.

The face of the person that picked him up was hidden behind a black helmet. "Thought you would get away, did cha?"

The person dropped him and reached into his pocket, pulling out a slick black stick. Syaoran heard a murmur, than the tip of the wand lit up and a red blast shot out of it, hitting him middle in the chest. Syaoran buckled over, rolling to his side, trying to grasp for breath.

The man picked him up again, this time keeping him in the air much longer. Syaoran head pounded with each movement as the man inspected him. At long last, the man seemed to know what he was looking for, for he shouted, "Holy _Shit_! This kid's a TRICK!"

Syaoran's vision was going, but he saw more men with helmets come.

"A real trick?" asked someone.

"Yeah," said the man, letting Syaoran drop again. This seemed to be a game for him. "No wonder he was not showing up on the visuals. He's a damn trick!"

"A trick! Let me rough him up a little, Jung, I want to beat up a trick!"

"Shut up! I caught him, I get to beat him! Got that!"

"Come on, can we have some fun with it?"

"Later. Not now."

"A trick! I can't believe this. This is so cool! Can we kill it? Can we rough it up a lil'? Can we bust its' head open?"

"No. Stupid Kazou told us to keep everyone associated with the magic alive. This trick included."

"But it's not human! It's a trick! Why should we keep it alive?"

"I don't make the rules!" The man bellowed, finally shutting up the rest of the men around him. He picked Syaoran up again, than dropped him. "Lets beat it, for fun."

As if on cue, Syaoran felt a boot sink deep into his stomach. It rested there only for a moment, before a relentless pounding began, heaving Syaoran's body off the ground a little each time. In the mist of the beating, Syaoran's vision brightened and darkened, leaving him dizzy. There were no thoughts in his mind now, nothing but the pain that echoed in his chest and gut. There was no room from anything but pain. It became almost a rhythm, as more than one foot now kicked him. Syaoran wanted to roll away from it all, he wanted to scream. But large hands of burly men gripped him, keeping him in one place.

He wished to pass out. He wished he would just pass out. However, the ultimate pain was yet to come. As long last, they stopped, whispering. Or was that whispering? Syaoran could not tell. All his mind registered was that the kicking had stopped. Seconds passed. More seconds. Hope seemed to come back slowly, through the cloud of pain. Maybe it had stopped, maybe it was over, maybe he was all right, maybe he could leave-

Syaoran saw the gleam of a black club above him. It was raised in slow anticipation. In one swift movement, the club was brought down onto his right leg, smashing it. Syaoran heard the worst sound of his whole life; a snap and crunch. Than someone was screaming. Someone was screaming loudly, with a raspy voice. The sound filled his ears and Syaoran wanted to turn it off. It took a moment before he realized that the person screaming was himself, he was the one whom's voice filled his own ears, loud and scratchy.

His leg was shattered.

That was the last thing he knew. Then he got his wish.

* * *


	5. Ch4 Happy

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the original characters, however, any new ones are mine. Thank you

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Emperor's palace in the most elaborate of all our government buildings. The Emperor welcomes all the parties present with open arms, and sincerely hopes to be received in the same manner. He graciously provided rooms and food for all present, and will continue to do so until the meetings are over. Tonight's banquette consists of seafood from our southern Sectors, the best in the entire world. Entertainment and jesters shall be present shortly. 

"I am most pleased with tonight's outcome of party members. I have been informed that we even have special appearances from some of the families from Sector 03 and 04. Please give applause to the Chyou Clan, the family that runs the best magical detection agency, and the rarely seen Daidouji Family, head of one of the few nongovernmental shipping and trading services.

"I have been requested to remind everyone why we are here. We are here tonight because of every person in this room. From the party members, to the families. Be proud of your hard sought for achievements. Without your help and aid, the Emperor would never have been able to run as efficiently as he has in the past fifth teen years. The Empower is most proud of his subjects. We, the people of the Capital City, have improved the daily lives of our everyday workers! Food production has gone up 23 since last quarter and has been distributed to our far southern and northern Sectors! Our prosperity is indeed living in the fruits of our labor.

But we must never forget what hard labor it was and still is. Even in today's sophisticated world, there are still the Non-Magicians, the maggots, the tricks! They are still among us, breathing our very air, living and killing. It is our duty, and the duty of the Emperor, to rid us all of this Tricks! Remember what they have done to us. Remember Bloody Holiday, remember New Years 8893. Remember all the pain and suffering the tricks have caused us."

And who is fighting back? Who is bringing the war to the tricks? The Emperor. The same Emperor who invited you tonight. The Emperor who has given you a safe place for you and your children. The Emperor who is improving the quality of life every day. The Emperor who has done this for not days, no weeks, not months, but years, 15 years to be exact.

Please welcome...Emperor Taro of the Seungjuhn Clan, the leader of us all!"

* * *

Fai sneezed. 

"Kami! What is wrong with you?" Kurogane's gruff voice exclaimed. "And where the hell are you? I thought you were in front of me."

"Mokona can see Fai!"

"Shut up."

After Sakura's escape, the trio had nothing to do other than to care for them-selves. After two right turns and one left, they somehow managed to get out on the other side of the building (twisting and turning their bodies in interesting ways to get through the debris), on another totally different street. Sounds of rubber boots hitting the pavement and shouts and screams were too close for comfort, so Kurogane and Fai kept running (Mokona stuffed itself in Kurogane's pocket).

At first, it seemed as though the people that were chasing them were following. Kurogane and Fai made several loops and turned twice around to lose them but nothing worked. Not for the first time, Kurogane wondered if their luck was up. It was not until Fai came to a certain broken down tunnel-like entrancethat he stopped.

"What are you doing?" Kurogane asked.

Fai's eyes were shut, his chest rising up and down slowly. Having seen this same performance once or twice, Kurogane watched with mild interest at what Fai was doing.

If the true Fai ever made an appearance from behind that goofy mask, it was during this. Even if it was only for the briefest of moments, when Fai closed his eyes and concentrated, his true self emerged. A strange wind appeared and picked the man's blond hair off his long face. The effect was stunning on anyone who watched. Fai had a certain beauty that was difficult to describe, only felt. He was magnificentand powerful, a deadly combination.

Fai raised his hand to the entrance, his body swaying though wind was absent. After minutes, he returned from his heightened state and spoke in an oddly detached voice, "We should go this way." Unlike so many other times, he did not wait for Kurogane or Mokona, taking the lead of their group.

Kurogane had no idea what the hell the magician was doing, but he did not question it and marched forward after the tall man. _'Man, this city gives me the creeps...'_

In truth, they really were in a tunnel. There was a musty air around them like in a cave, full of foreboding. Darkness was all they saw. It coiled around them, made them trip and fall, and played games with them. Once of twice Kurogane thought he saw something, only to remind himself that was just the blinking of his eyes, nothing else.

They had been walking for some time without talking, for fear their hunters would catch up with them. Strangely, they did not follow. (Kurogane had a suspicion Fai knew the reason for this, but did not ask. Whatever he needed to know, Fai would tell him. Otherwise, it was just an irritating game of riddles and jokes).

"Fai-san's got a cold!" piped Mokona.

"Shut up."

Fai wiped his finger under his nose, pausing. "It's all this dust. Looks like no one has been here for years, ne, Kuro-pippi?"

_'You knew that before we walked in here,'_ Kurogane thought, _'I am not an naive 16 year old, you ass, stop playing with me'_. He sniffed the air; soon after wishing he had not done so.

This place _reeked_ of blood. It was all over. Kurogane was positive that if he saw the walls, they would have been stained blood.

Blood. Best kept in the body, he always thought. _'Though taking it out is not half bad, either..'_. Flashbacks of fighting stormed his mind. The clicks and clangs of swords gracing each other, pulling back, than charging forward to hit again-

"A lot of people died here." Fai's voice broke through his ears.

Mokona stirred. "Mokona doesn't like it here." Kurogane unconsciously patted its' round head.

"So," Fai continued, as though his previous observation was nothing more than breakfast talk, "Why did you let Sakura-chan go?"

_'Here it comes,'_ thought Kurogane, running his hand over a curve in the wall, _'I knew it.'_

"You could have easily caught her again, yet you let her go. I do admire the way you pretended to miss a step to give her enough time to run away. Very clever. She will never guess that you did that on purpose. I almost did not catch it."

"What gave it away?" asked Kurogane, instantly wishing he had just remained silent. Some things were best left alone.

"The way you looked after her. Whenever you have something profound and deep in mind your eyebrows dip a bit downwards and you get a crease right here in the middle of your forehead (like Syaoran-kun! How adorable, you two are so much alike!). So whatever the reason for this is, you have obviously given it a lot of thought," mused Fai.

Though it was dark and they could not see each other, Kurogane threw a glare in the direction of Fai's voice.

"You mean you don't know?" Kurogane challenged.

"I have my suspicions, but nothing I can confirm. The only concrete thing I have is the fact that you let her go. You wanted her to go, didn't you?"

Kurogane's stony silence was enough to prove the assumption was correct.

Fai continued. "I can't really guess why. I suspect this is another lesson the two of them need to learn, though I am not sure I like the way you are handling it."

Kurogane snorted. "There is no easy way to learn this."

"You must really care about them to do this. Normally, a sane parent would not think of teaching this lesson to their children. "A beat of silence passed, which was a bit surprising, to say the least. Fai expected Kurogane to lash out at the suggestion that he was a parent to Syaoran and the princess, and when none came an alarm sounded in Fai's mind. "One of them might die." Fai continued.

"That's the point."

More silence. Even Mokona was being unusually quiet.

"You and I both know what death is," Kurogane began, "We have seen it, and we have killed." Kurogane noted that Fai did not object to this before he continued. "They have not. Though they have had someone dear to them die, they don't seem to think that any one of us can die too. That's the cockiness of being young that I hate. They are stupid when it comes to death, and we know it."

Fai winced at Kurogane's sharp words, but felt himself agreeing with him. "In a way, we are playing with their lives." He said. "That makes us as cruel as the people who want them dead."

Kurogane's responce came, though the was a certain difference in his voice. It was still the gruff baritone as before, yet now there was a pitch of sadness in it, a sort of sign of kindness and care that Fai had only heard the ninja use on rare occasions, normally when concerning his princess Tomoyo.

"It is better if they are prepared to face anything." He stopped the sentence there, though Fai could almost hear the words, "if we are not there" in the silence that followed.

A bitter taste formed in the magician's mouth. He really truly did not like playing with people's lives, however much he had battled before. There was always a brutality in it that never pleased him. And these children being so young- he stopped. _'No, they are not children. Syaoran and Sakura are not as young and innocent as they were. They are adorable, but not as young as Kurogane thinks...or wants to think.'_

And yet, Fai did nothing to stop Kurogane. He went through this 'lesson' himself. While he shuddered at the thought of seeing Sakura's eyes tear up, it was at the same time nessicary. Their enemies were getting more bold, more desperate. If there was anything to use a leverage to make the princess comply with their wills, it was Syaoran, whether her Highness wanted to admit it or not.

He remembered the first time he had ever spoken to Syaoran and felt the sudden urge to laugh. "Isn't it funny how wrapped up we all have gotten in each other's lives? My goodness, it's like we are a family." Once again, Fai found himself waiting for Kurogane's retort.

"Hmph." That was as close to an agreement Kurogane ever got.

_'He must not have heard me,'_ Fai thought.

There was a pause as they came to a staircase that slowly climbed up. There was a faint light somewhere above them, but it was too little to do much other than to see one's hand in front of their face. They started up.

"Someone's been watching us again." Kurogane started. "It disappeared for a little bit a few worlds back, but now I have that feeling again. Have you noticed it?"

"Yes, I got that feeling to, but it is not as strong as before." Fai answered, trying to grab a hold of something other than the wall to help him up the stairs. "I don't think that there is anyone watching us on this world, though. At least, they are not looking at us right now. Maybe indirectly..." ("Mokona feels it too! Puu!")

"What?"

"This world probably did at some point have something to do with whoever is after us (maybe it still does, oooh, isn't that scary, Kuro-pi?), but not at the moment. That would explain the lingering feeling of the presence. Most likely, it would be best to leave as soon as possible."

"You hate this place?"

"No, I love it."

After snapping his hand opened and closed for some time, Fai managed by chance to grab Kurogane's jacket. He merrily held on (and did not trip as much) while Kurogane lead the way up the stairs. The light was becoming slowly brighter, though it was taking the time grass took to grow.

"So, what if, by coincidence, one of the five of us happened to die? Would you cry?" Fai said, the humor in his voice coming back.

Kurogane, like a politician, ignored the question, instead saying, "It's getting harder. The feathers are becoming more important each world we go to. Someone, or something, has been planning a lot about this. Even the witch is checking to see if we are all still alive. Something big is going to happen once this is all over. And I don't like it."

This was one of the few times that any of the group acknowledges the ending of their journey. It still seemed to be such a long ways away to care about, much less hate it with the passion Kurogane was sure to have. It was evident, however. Just looking at Sakura's new foundstrength told them enough.

But, than again, what exactly was the ending of their journey? Was it when one of them died? Was it when Mokona leaves them forever in one place? Was it when all of Sakura's feathers were collected? Or, the happiest of them all, was it when they all got to go home and live happily ever after?

_'Ah, but that is the problem, isn't it,'_ Fai thought. _'Would any of us be happy at all, really?'_ As much as Syaoran loved Sakura, there was something strange about him, something that set him apart from all the others. Fai could not place his finger on it, but Syaoran sent a chill down his spine twice. There was something terribly...wrong with him. Some obscure flaw that one would skip over repeatedly, until it was too late. It worried Fai, that flaw, more so was that he could not find it. Beneath his naive and don't-look-at-me face was a mysterious air, cold and bone chilling. Where the hell did that boy come from anyways?

He had such a kind, good natured personality, one that others arelatch onto. To see any sort of war or bloodin his eyes seemedsowhat...wrong. Yet to assume he was a silly boy with a digging habit also seemed horribly wrong.With such a personality, and flaw, how could he ever be happy forever in Clow when his childhood love doesn't know him and will mostly likely marry some clean shaven prince? There was nothing for him to go back to, other than dirt and forgotten fragments of civilization that haven't been eaten up by bugs (after all, didn't his father die?). Syaoran had seen civilizations form and destroyed before his own eyes. He had done every historians dream. How could he go back?

How could Sakura be happy when a large part of her life was taken? Fai underestimated Sakura's memories of Syaoran at first, yet it seemed that she loved him in a way that was too deep for a girl her age. Even now, that love they had was showing up more and more and, if anything, becoming more intense than anyone could have guessed. While Fai knew from experience that most likely Sakura and Syaoran would _never_ be together, he liked the fluffy fairy tale version, where everyone lived happily ever after.

However, her power to too large to be ignored for long. Fai could feel it when she got extremely emotional, and its' immensity overwhelmed him, dwarfing his own feeble magic. The princess was a walking time bomb. No wonder someone wanted her. She was a flower with a honey scent attracting all sorts of venomous insects.

Out of all of them, Kurogane had a home that he wanted to go to. His devotion was something to be admired. But, it was also difficult to know if Kurogane, who had a home, would be happy. He came from a world soaked in blood and had seen places of joy and love. How could his killer instinct be toned down? The answer to unlocking Kurogane probably was the princess he spoke of so often, half the time with contempt, the other half with devotion. She was the reason behind his leaving, and most likely the reason he would be coming back.

Lastly, what about Fai? What about the sweet magician whose wish was to never return to his home? Would he be traveling forever, from dimension to dimension, searching for nothing in particular other than one more bed to sleep in and one more hot meal to eat? The possibility of settling down was of no interest to him. At some point in time (hopefully not too long, not too soon) they would come to Kurogane's and Syaoran and Sakura's home worlds. They would leave (it was only natural) and he would eventually be left alone with Mokona.

Fai thought about the white majin-bu impersonator, a bit saddened. Mokona was a love and a good companion, but was that enough to live the rest of his life with? Was Mokona his own, an ever joyful gift from the Witch until he died? Would he roam through the dimensions like pirates on the sea?

Fai imagined himself dressed in a flamboyant pirate suit with the same fearless, vulgar attitude; roaming all the lands he could. Then one day,on a sandy white beach (no snow whatsoever), lying down and never rising again. There would be no funeral, no tears, no nothing. In fact, his body would just lay there until various animals had picked his flesh clean off his bones, leaving them to turn hard and as white as the sand around him. Mokona would be long gone by than, probably back to the witch, and than perhaps some brown-haired boy with a digging habit would find him and bury him.

He chuckled at the image.

"What the hell are you doing?" Kurogane's deep growl broke through Fai's thoughts.

Fai glanced at him, one eyebrow raised. "Hm?"

Kurogane nodded downwards with his chin. Fai followed his nod to where his hands were tightly clasped on the ninja's jacket. He grinned. "I did not like holding on to the wall."

A snort, or another growl, it was hard to tell, emitted from Kurogane.

Fai glanced around, somewhat surprised. They had reached the top of the stairs were a bit more light was. It was still dark, but a bright street lamp was not far off.

"Goodness, I must have zoned out for a while!"

"I didn't give a da-" Kurogane began before getting a light slap on the arm.

"Where are we-"

The next two seconds were a blur. In the blink of an eye, thousands of white lights lit up all around them, starling and defeating the darkness of the night till it was unrecognizable. Mokona cried out in pain, while Kurogane and Fai covered their eyes from the brightness. They could not see anything but purple dots in the center of their vision and became like blundering fools. Fai heard the sound of metal against metal and assumed Kurogane had gotten his sword out, though how this was going to help, Fai did not really know.

After being in pitch black for over two hours, this sudden light was too much to handle for their eyes and tears appeared instantly.

"HALT!" A voice boomed, startling everyone. " LAY DOWN ON THE GROUND OR DIE"!

* * *

Author's note: a little chapter that I hope will please your minds for the moment. A small side note: if I am not forecoming with a chapter, or if you feel a need to tell me to hurry the heck up, please feel free to chew me out. Strangly, it encourages me...  



	6. Ch5 Captured

"Saburo, what is it?" 

"I have just received some good news and some bad news. Which would you like to hear first; what Kazou made a shit out of or what he did not make a shit out of?"

"I see you have some wine next to you. Whatever Kazou has done can't be so terrible for you to drink wine."

"That's because there is the one piece of good news, Taro! Just as I suspected, Kazou has made a huge mess out of things that could have gone so perfectly if only I had been in control of!"

"What are you talking about?"

"The three magical sources. One of which is on its way to meet us as we speak."

"But...they don't exist. You said so yourself."

"Ah, but I was wrong. So wonderfully, incredibly wrong. And though Kazou has screwed things up tenfold, even_ he_ did something right this time."

"They exist? How can they exist¬-"

"I don't know for sure, but they must be related to the feather. In any case, we should kill Kazou soon. His laziness and lack of finesse is getting to be uncontrollable."

"What has he done?"

"He had over 300 special service men under his control, along with an assortment of battle armor vehicles and visuals. Enough to cover all the sectors within a few hours. The three magical sources had apparently been moving around today at an amazingly slow rate- suggesting they were on foot, silly them. The report reads, "Upon reaching a cross-section of three sectors, four, not three, moving objects were seen and identified as four humans.""

"Four humans?"

"It gets even better; the report goes on and on, but basically this small group had managed to conceal one trick. Kazou caught it; of course, those tricks truly are very slow.""

"So there are four humans, three with magic and one without? How strange."

"Something is missing from this report, however."

"What?"

"It gets confusing when the squad come in contact with the group. I must remember to replay the visuals later, perhaps they will explain..."

"Since you are not very fore coming with anything that is of any interest to me, I'll ask something else. Who did Kazou catch?"

"Kazou, the swine, only caught the trick and one magician. The other two escaped."

"WHAT! How did they escape!"

"Apparently one or both of those that escaped had the ability to detect a way out. If you remember, Taro, the tricks used the library to enter and leave the city on New Years 8893 for their little massacre."

"Why did we not close that place off?"

"Because your little General Kazou never expected another trick this close to the government towers again. However, these humans seemed to have appeared out of nowhere and confused him."

"Saburo, you do not...you do not think..."

"The tricks are getting smarter with their little antics? Ha, never. They are still sitting dumbly, licking their wounds. There is always the question of what will happen once those two reach their end. Since they are magical, the tricks may treat them with the same amount of hospitality as we have done-"

"Never mind that! Is there ANY good news to this or are you drinking wine to numb the pain?"

"Of course there is good news. General Kazou can't ruin my mood all the time, now can he?"

"Will you stop being amusing with me, Saburo!"

"Patience, dear brother. I am getting to that. My genius has never failed you, has it? I have already formed a plan to insure your safety. Even the Trick is useful in this little brainchild of mine."

"Saburo, if you don't tell me..."

"The magician we caught happens to be the most powerful out of all of them. But most important, it is a woman. A young, pretty woman..."

* * *

Tomoyo watched the dancers and clowns with a look of plain disgust, giving the occasional sigh now and then to show how truly upset she truly was. 

"Ah, my sweet. Are you not enjoying yourself?" The calm voice, laced with amusement, made Tomoyo scowl. She did not bother to turn her head as she replied with a curt, sharp tone, "As if _you_ can be the gentleman, Sorata. You hate this just as much as I do."

The man beside her mocked astonishment, putting his hand to his mouth. "My goodness! I would have never imagined my little, sweet, kind cousin would ever-ever!- use such vile language. You horrid child, you!"

Tomoyo reached down to pick up her cherry drink. Putting it to her lips, she said, "Where's your fiancée? I would like to further warn her about the mistake she is making marrying you."

Sorata laughed a deep chuckle from his throat. "Arashi? She is around here somewhere, probably talking with Chuu. We're finishing up here, then heading downstairs to our rooms and going to bed. And don't worry; Arashi is more then ready to tear me up if I do something stupid this month."

"I knew I liked her."

"I figured you would, considering she is so much like you." Sorata smiling face droop slowly, his brown dipping low, scrunching up his forehead.

Tomoyo studied his face for a moment, moving to place her hand on his tall shoulder. "Worried about tomorrow?" She knew she did not really need to ask, for his outside anxiety was more than apparent. "Do you have another headache?"

Sorata shook his head, turning to look down at her. His long face and serious eyes stared down at her with a knowledge that made Tomoyo shiver. "I want you to be careful, Tomoyo. The whole time we are here."

"Sorata, I know-"

"No. No, you don't. This is your first time to the capital, and things will be happening here that will make you mad and angry. You see all these people around you?" Tomoyo nodded. "These are the worst people in the world, and they will lie and cheat you out of everything you have for power. That's all they want; power. Power that corrupts and ruins lives. They are masters at it, and have been for over 15 years. Yet now we have a chance..."

Sorata bent his tall frame to look her straight in the eye. Tomoyo felt pride swell up in her chest as she looked in his handsome face, searching his eyes for all the rights he would do to correct the wrongs. He was her hope. Everyone's hope.

"Do you think it will finally happen, Sorata?" she dropped her voice to a whisper, leaning into his ear. "Do you think you'll be able to bring down the emperor?"

"Nope." Tomoyo gasped, looking at his face to find him smiling. "Not just me. But, yes, if we can make a difference here in the next few weeks with all of this blood suckers, than maybe, just maybe, we can bring the emperor down in a few years."

Tomoyo could barely suppress the pride that was bursting inside of her. To bring down the emperor! Before it was just a dream, one that one would forget moments after waking. But now! One could hear it being whispered in the tightest of circles, spreading the news of the new revolt, one that might, if continued, bring down the emperor. The amazement that she was in the middle of it was more than she could possibly handle. And her cousin was the star.

"You can do it, Sorata. I know it."

Sorata's lips curved upwards, not in an all out smile, but one that weighed down by worry. "Just be careful, Tomoyo. If anything goes wrong, it's not the end of the world. I want to leave the capital with my family alive."

Squeezing his shoulder reassuringly, Tomoyo smiled at him. "Nothing will happen. The emperor's not going to win this time."

As soon as those words left her lips, she wished she had not said them, watching as Sorata's normally laughing eyes flashed anger. "Don't," he said, in a warning tone, "underestimate the emperor. We being here in the capital should have warned you enough, but maybe you're too young to really understand."

"Understand what?"

"That he has been the emperor for 15 years not on just plain, dumb luck. He and his brother are fooling us now, even as we speak. Ever one of his moves has been planned for, and he for sure has something to surprise us." Sorata's eyes faded out of focus as he spoke, "And I can only pray it is not what I think it is..."

Tomoyo wanted to ask more, but she realized then that she would not get any more out of her cousin. The clock ticked 12 and many people were leaving their tables to go to their rooms downstairs. The show and entertainment were long done, with a few late nighters up drinking by the bar (provided by the emperor, of course).

"Good night, little cousin. Sleep well." Sorata bent down and kissed Tomoyo's cheek. "Will you need me to lead the way to your room?"

She smiled gratefully at him, but shook her head slightly. "No, no, I will be alright, thank you. These halls aren't that difficult to navigate through, and I can always ask one of the servants for help. Say goodnight to Arashi for me."

As she watched Sorata go, Tomoyo thought that her body did not feel as tried as she knew it was supposed to have been. Rather restless, she paused for a moment, thinking about a way to pass the time. Her room seemed too dull, this hall too crowded with people. So she did the only thing she could do in such a large place, she explored.

The capital city was a wondrous place, full of glamour and sparkle-or, at least, the little that she saw from her window on the train ride here. It was a monstrous city, an endless concrete jungle and limitless buildings. And the seven government towers, one of which she was in right now. Well! They were the most extravagant of them all.

Seven government towers! The number it-self spoke of the egoistical attitude the emperor had. They were in the center of the city, Sector number one, with all other sectors surrounding it. The largest, the one where everyone who had come to attended this month's political meetings were being roomed, was the emperor's own brain child, either his or his brother's (they were almost the same person anyways).

Tomoyo touched the walls, feeling a spark of magic and retracting her fingers instantly.

"So, it is true, what they say," she murmured under her breath, all the more astonished by the amount of power the emperor had and hating him more for it.

Tomoyo walked out of the great hallway and began the slow, long walk to her room, taking more than one left and right turn then she needed. She touched the walls now and then, each time retracting her fingers from the spark of magic she felt.

Two left turns and one floor higher, Tomoyo came to a large window that overlooked the city. She had never been afraid of heights, but even one who was used to heights would cower a little at the sight before her. The city was stretch out at her feet, its tall buildings cramped together and reaching for the sky. They were all like small toy blocks she used to play with as a child, building them up, and then crushing them down with a swipe of her hand. Tomoyo could not even see the people below, she doubted there were any.

The six other government towers surrounded her on all sides, each facing the most magnificent. They were impossibly tall; Tomoyo remembered thinking as she arrived earlier that morning. Too tall.

Her fingers touched the glass, recoiling once more from the magic she felt. _'And now I know why,'_ she thought. _'Magic. That is what is holding this huge building up. It would be impossible to build such a large thing and have it standing for more than ten minutes. This whole building is alive with magic.'_

Tomoyo continued her walk in the twisting hallways until they began to look like one another.

"Oh, dang it." she double back, trying to hear the sounds of the party. "Where am I?"

The hallways continued to bend, each one smelling of a fresh coat of paint. The soles on her shoes touched brilliant red carpet, never making one single sound. The walls around her were bare and ordinary here, Tomoyo guessing that she must have accidentally stumbled into the working floors in this building. High ceilings were above her head with identical light bulbs in each light fixture.

_'I am in a maze'_ Tomoyo thought. _'The maze of my enemy.'_

Down another hallway, she let out pent up air in her lungs. In her state, she had not noticed how tired her eyes had become, not taking in where she was going. So, she really lost. Glancing around, Tomoyo grimaced at the thought of having to ask for help from the servants. It would be a blow to her moral if she had to ask the very people who served the Emperor his afternoon tea and biscuits. It was a matter of principal; if she was going to survive on her own in this blood city, then she would do so every moment. To do otherwise was almost a sign of weakness. And weakness was simply not allowed in the capital city. Not ever.

Pushing onward with renewed energy, she rounded a corner, then froze in fright.

Their black uniforms and helmets were instantly recognizable from a distance. The Emperor's personal army!

And she was standing froze to the ground, right by them. Tomoyo's mind had gone numb to this surprise, before going into a hyper overdrive._ 'Hide, damnit, Tomoyo, hide!' _The rest of her body, shaking with fear, spun sharply and she dove behind the corner that she had just emerged from.

For heartbeats afterwards, Tomoyo could not have moved even if she wanted to. The sight of such a force was chilling! At one glance, she knew enough to measure the number of soldiers standing there ranged from twenty to thirty. They were standing around, looking strong and invincible, waiting. Even while standing, their erect posture demonstrated their strength and unity. Tomoyo's toes and fingers tingled from the amount of awful magic rippling from them. From under every mask, every helmet, every suit, ruthless, raw power seeped.

She had to leave. Had to leave now! Had to get back! Had to leave before they caught her, before that ruthless power turned its attention towards hers! Before-

"Let me go! Let me GO! Where is he! Where did you take him? LET ME GO!"

A loud feminine voice shrieked part panic, part anger. Tomoyo halted, listening.

Sounds of grunting and groaning, someone wrestling against something came moments before another panic cry from the feminine voice. "Please! Just take me to him! He's hurt! He's hurt!"

The voice startled Tomoyo's so much so that she forgot her own situation. Carefully lowering herself to the carpet, she peeked a glance around the corner, making sure to show as little of herself as possible. She sucked in air at the sight.

The soldiers had parted enough to let through some sort of prisoner. A small, young woman was in the clutches of two tall, built soldiers. Though they towered over her, she was not letting herself be dragged along, struggling every single movement the soldiers made toward the double doors twenty feet away from where the group was. Her arms flapped franticly about, as though she were trying to scratch out the eyes of her captors. She kicked and stomped her feet, then dug them into the carpet to prevent herself from further moving forward.

Tomoyo found herself cheering on this person for no other reason then the fact that she was refusing to give up. Watching her struggle was filling Tomoyo's breast with hope, replacing the fear.

"SHUT UP, GIRL!" A large man, with the body of a bear, thundered. On his arm was a white strip, signifying he was in command. He reared up on the girl, looking down at her, his right hand up by his left ear, preparing. The woman raised her head.

Green eyes! Shocking in their color, those eyes looked out from her head with no shame, daring any other color to show such clarity. They looked at the bear man with such intensity and fire, the very balance of power almost shifted from the soldiers to this defiant girl. Tomoyo stared, mesmerized by the youthful features the woman had.

_'She is a girl!'_ Tomoyo thought, her mind ablaze with fascination. _'She can't be older then me!'_ The horrified expression on the girl gripped Tomoyo's heart. Her cheeks were dirty and tear stained. As the bear man stood in front of her, her arms stopped their losing battle. Her wrist seemed unusually small in the hard grip of the soldiers holding her. The fire in the girl's eyes evaporated into nothingness, replaced by large, wet tears. _'She's terrified. What in heaven's name is going on here?'_

Bear man swung his hand down, the back of his hand smacking the girl in the face, sending her whole body back. Her head whipped to and fro from the impact, her tears cascading from her eyes, down her cheeks, on her chin, onto the carpet.

"I told you, SHUT UP!"

Holding her hand to her cheek as best she could, the girl glanced up once more, asking a question unlike any before. "Why are you doing this?" Her voice was still filled with the same panic as before, though the energy in it was gone. She was defeated. Her terror had gone beyond her to a point where she seemed almost calm.

Tomoyo's chest deflated, her hope dashed when the girl spoke. The will to fight was gone, thus, so was the hope. In spite of it all, Tomoyo remained where she was, praying the girl would continue to fight, knowing that she would not.

"Take her in." Bear man commanded, and all the soldiers parted to let the girl and her captors through. The girl did not attempt to disrupt them any further, realizing how fruitless such a waste would be. They marched the rest of the twenty feet down to the double doors, which opened slowly. From her angle, Tomoyo could not see what was inside the room, but the tingling in her fingers and toes warned her enough to not attempt to move to a better position. Following them with her eyes, she watched as they went through the double doors. Once the door closed, the rest of the soldiers left quickly at the barking orders from the bear man.

Tomoyo waited for another five minutes before she got up from her position, deeming it safe. She crawled around the corner, tip-toeing her way with the stealth a cat would use to catch her prey. Glancing down and back several times to make sure there were no more soldiers, Tomoyo walked up to the double doors, letting her fingers run over the fine wood. Powerful magic tingled up her arm into her mind. '_I might not be able to remember this place again, but my body will',_ she thought, continuing to run her fingers over the door. _'I just hope I can find this again.'_ she thought.

Tomoyo stepped back from the door, turned and ran. Her heart tore at the thought of leaving the poor girl to whatever evils were in that room.

_'I love you.'_ Running down the stairs, Tomoyo could still hear the girl's high voice calling out for 'him', whoever _'he_' was._ 'I have no idea who you are, but I love you. Please, keep fighting'

* * *

_"Hiiragizawa! Hiiragizawa!" A static voice chirped. "Eriol, damn you, wake up!"

The man the voice was referring to was, at the current moment, slouched over the controls, drooling slightly. His glasses hung down from the bridge of his nose as he lifted his upper body and pressed his finger down on a red button with the words, 'Reply', above it.

"Waz is it?" Eriol took off his glasses, rubbing his eyes. "Wass...(yawn)...going on?"

"Finally! I've been trying to reach you for the past 15 minutes!"

"I was on very...official business," replied Eriol, not bothering to hide the laziness in his voice.

"Yeah right. Anyways, get everything ready down there, you have a visitor coming."

"What?" exclaimed Eriol. He twirled around in his chair, reaching back for a clipboard. Scanning his eyes down the sheet, he pressed the button once more. "There's nothing here on the sheet. I was not expecting anyone for at least...well, never, really, to be quite frank with you."

"Don't worry. This guy's pretty easy, I heard. Wand-up-his-ass-Kazou caught him today on a special assignment of some sort, so you better be nice to him."

Eriol rolled his eyes upwards, finding the tackles humor somewhat disgusting. It unnerved him that there were such idiots in this building as the one talking to him right now. However, Eriol's reasons for putting up with such working conditions numbered many, starting with easy money. The capital city was no joy, and jobs with the government were easy to find, so after getting kicked out, his mind put two-and-two together and signed up.

Only later did he realize the absolute lack of humor this place had to offer. By the time his mistake in work was discovered, however, he had already undergone 5 months of training and he had signed up for a total of two and half years. _'It'll be okay, Eriol, buddy,'_ he told himself repeatedly, _'as soon as your done, you can do whatever you want. Don't worry about those fools. You'll be gone in two years and you'll never see them again.' _The only joy in his monotonous life was his dream of getting as far away from the capital city as possible. That, and the fact that during the two and a half years, the idiots could not reproduce their stupefied spawn into the population, thanks to the really bummed down government military code. A silly code that many tried avoiding, but that proved handy in controlling the young men and women for their two and half years of service.

"When's he coming?" Eriol asked.

"Right now."

Sure enough, as soon as the words were spoken, a loud boom vibrated off the metal door containing Eriol. Jumping up from the control desk, he scampered to the door, flicking his small wand once to unlock the doors before he replaced it in his front jacket pocket. The doors opened to four hulking men, each wearing black suits and helmets. Two of them dragged a man in the room by his wrists, the rest of his body lifeless on the floor.

_'Whoa, Special Service'_, thought Eriol as he stepped aside to let the men in.

"You, Hiiragizawa Eriol." One of them stated. Before Eriol had a chance to nod, the man dumped folders and papers into his arms. "Top priority mission. Orders are to maintain state of condition with limitless use of drugs and/or spells. Constant supervision, regular reports and updates, and no action shall be taken unless order by top military officials. Death acceptable, but keep alive as long as possible."

While one of them was drawled onwards, the other three men taking the prisoner to the room next to Eriol's control panel, lifting him on top a medical platform.

Eriol's office consisted of a platform and small medical room. There was only one way in or out of Eriol's workplace, and that was the door which the men caring the prisoner came through. The door opened up onto the platform, which contained a chair and the control desk. Directly to the left of the platform was the medical room where Eriol had the unpleasant job of cleaning up badly bruised or damaged people. On the right side of the platform came a small staircase with wide steps which led down to the row of cells.

The men left with saying much more, not that Eriol would have cared to listen. He walked over to the body, grabbing a sponge, alcohol, and band aids, stating, "Welcome to the Eriol's Splendid Detention Block! Your stay here will be marvelous, I can tell you. You'll have top-of-the-line drugs to keep you in that wonderful comatose state, along with a prefect little bed with nice strong ropes to keep you tied down, and comfy!"

Eriol took the band aids out of the box, placing them in a neat line, one after the other, and continued chattering to himself. "Oh, not to worry, you'll have fun here! You don't have to do anything really, other than die soon. Can't have you alive and breathing, now can we?"

Eriol allowed himself a chuckle before actually getting down to work. He examined the man's clothes, his brows dipping low when he saw how ragged and poor quality they were. His eyes traveled over the man's chest and shoulders._ 'He has quite a small build,'_ thought Eriol, continuing his examination over the man's shoulders, around his collar bone, up his neck, to his face-

Eriol froze.

'_This is no man.'_

A young face stared back at him. The age was not hard to determine, somewhere from 15 to 18, not much older. His skin was smooth and creamy, besides the most recent open cuts, no wrinkles or scars. Brown hair, brown eyebrows, and high cheekbones gave him a handsome appearance. From his body size and age, it was no wonder he had a small build. He was still growing.

_'Why did they bring me a boy?'_

Eriol cleaned up his face first. There was one large wound, as though someone took a rock and rubbed it roughly up and down on his skin. Bits of skin that were ripped off were hanging loose, and dirt and bits of concrete had found themselves in the cuts that were left opened. Eriol treated his face quickly, using once or twice a healing spell to make the process speed up. Minor cuts and breaks he was fine to leave alone, it was better they healed on their own anyways.

The rest of the boy's body was a mess. Eriol felt himself growing sick as he slowly removed outer layers of clothing to get to injures that needed attention. Darkly colored bruises along his chest and abdomen made his skin bloated and shiny. There weren't that many broken bones here, beside two rib bones. Eriol healed those instantly with two flicks of the wand.

The boy's right leg bent the wrong way, and Eriol had to cut up the pant seam to view it. It was the worst sight out of everything he had seen tonight. Eriol gagged, but held his stomach. At one point the bone actually stuck out of the skin. It was swollen, shattered, bloody. This explained the boy's unconsciousness. The leg was so badly injured it was putting his very life in peril. Too much blood loss and the leg itself was beyond useless now. Had Eriol not been there to cast a slow healing spell, he estimated the prisoner would not have lived past the night. He patched up the rest of the wounds.

Suspension as to what led to the boy's current state of being grew in Eriol's mind, though deep down he knew the answer. The Special Service was all too egger to get the job done and they tended to do a hackles job of it. It was not unusual for a prisoner to come in beaten, though hardly as badly as this.

_'Either this boy did something very wrong, or there is something wrong going on now.'_

It was not until much later, after Eriol had wrapped up the boy's last injure, his wrist, in cloth that he finally noticed one trivial detail. There was no tingle at his fingertips when he touched the boy's skin. Nothing. Not one ounce of magic. Eriol panicked.

_'HE'S DEAD? ALREADY!'_ He grabbed his wand from his pocket, putting his ear to the prisoner's chest, listening intently. Very slowly, faintly, the chest rose up and down. Eriol looked up, scratching his head, musing. _'How can he be alive without magic? Is he so far gone that...'_

He paused.

"HE'S A TRICK!"

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the original characters. Any new characters, however, are a figment of my insane mind. Trust, not even I can control them. 

Author's note: Happy Holidays. check my profile page for any updates, and see you in 2006


	7. Ch6 Blackmail

Over the past few months of traveling, Sakura had heard of old folk's tales of the past, and had a memory or two of her own countries tales being told to her. They all told the same basic story; one of hardship, one of morality and occasionally spirituality, one of great scarifies one of great love. They all normally ended the same way too, in either tragedy or happily-ever-after. 

In the ones that ended in tragedy, the hero always had those last few moments which would decide the way his own story would be told to generations afterward. The last few moments counted for everything, no matter what. If the hero acted cowardly, they would be shamed. However, if the hero acted with moments that showed his courage and his bravery, than he would be remembered as a saint.

When Sakura heard these stories, she would always wonder why the hero did what he did. How could he be so calm when he was about to die? How could he still stand up for his beliefs in the face of hellish fire? What if he just succumb to the fates and let himself die? Would that make him less of a man? Or was it the principal of it all?

Sakura had no answers, yet she thought back to the hero in the story as she stood in the hall she had just been thrown in, waiting. She wondered for a moment if this was how he felt, waking to his doom, than scolded herself.

_'I am not going to die,_' she told herself again. '_They would have killed me a long time ago. This is not how I should be thinking. Think, Sakura, think about something else. Anything else!'_

However, nothing but the hero's lone figure walking would come to her mind. _'I am like the hero,'_ she thought as she forced herself to raise her eyes to meet her captors, _'I'll can't do much, but I can try.'_ She stared down at the two lone figures opposite her at the other end of the hall.

The room was large and lush with reds and purples, golds and sapphires, silvers and turquoises. A large red carpet stretched its mighty body down the whole floor, with intricate designs and weavings. The walls were covered in a golden clothe, and the ceiling had large paintings on it, with human figures in a glowing light and surrounded by their subjects. There was a glint and sparkle to almost everything in the room, which Sakura realized was real gold etched into the engravings on the pictures and around the frames.

At the end of the hallway was a large chair, set above everything else in the room. Large, wide steps ran away from it, and a large glass window was behind it, showing the millions of nightlights this massive city had. In the middle of the chair sat a very large man. From the distance, Sakura could not judge his eyes, but his face was cruel.

"We have brought her, Emperor Taro!" The leader of the troop said, the same man who had smacked her seconds before. The sound of his voice made her cheek start to throb more. "The other one has been sent down to the Detention Block, as you have ordered."

At the mention of Saran-kun, Sakura's pain lessened, and she listened for anything more that would help her to him.

"Very well done, General Kazou. Take your troops and leave." The Emperor said, flicking one of his hands in the direction of the door.

The man, Kazou, hesitated a moment, glancing at Sakura than at the emperor. "Sir, I would like to remain and question the captive for news of her other companions, which have ...eluded us."

The Emperor chuckled. "Of course, of course. But not now. You shall have your chance, Kazou. I have a feeling this lady is going to be staying with us for a while." Sakura could feel the man's eyes on her, probing at her clothes, traveling her body. It made her feel degraded and disgusting, her stomach churned.

"Thank you, Emperor Taro." Kazou said, than spun around to face his man. The two men that had been holding Sakura let go, and they marched away. Blood rushed back into Sakura's numb arms, sending a tingling feeling down to her fingertips. She heard a door open and the loud clang of a door closing. And then, she was alone.

It was hard to determine if being in the room with this man was any better then being in the room with this man and the troops. At the current moment, being alone with this man scared her more then she thought it should. She stood there, waiting, her eyes to the ground, wondering what was going to happen. At long last, the Emperor called to her.

"Come." he said, like a master giving a command to a dog.

Fear gripped her feet and forced her to move. As she walked down the hall, Sakura noticed the brilliance in construction. The throne was at the center of it all, where the eye naturally went. It being raised a little above everything else made it out to mean not only a sign of respect, but of great power. This whole room seemed to be constructed around the throne purposely.

Making the person in the throne the mightiest of all.

This did not help her fear, but Sakura kept walking down.

As the man loomed over her, Sakura took in his features, while trying to push down the urge to empty her stomach's contents. 'I wish I wasn't here.' She thought, 'Kurogane-san, Fai-san...Syaoran-kun, where are you now?"

He was a giant. Dominant features gave his rugged face a strangely handsome appearance. Black hair was swept back from a widow's peak, his square jaw jutted out, and two red eyes, almost like Kurogane's, stared at her with an interested, but unimpressed glare. Almost as if she'd disappointed him the moment she walked into the room.

"This is her?" His deep voice asked. "She's so young."

"Yes, this is her." another replied.

Alarmed, Sakura spun around to face the second voice. Standing, not two arms length from her, was a man.

Much smaller than the Emperor, with a fairer face, yet the same black hair. Handsome, yet not overpowering, the face of a politician; completely trusting, yet sinister in nature. His thin lips pursed into a smile as he held out his hand to her, "Good evening." The words rolled off his tongue easily, as though he was discussing the weather with an old friend, instead of a terror-stricken young girl.

Sakura's instincts had saved her from harm more than once, and this was no exception. The Emperor sitting in the highest chair of power, however cruel and evil he was, was nothing, she knew, when compared to this man.

He was the one she should be afraid of.

* * *

Saburo was almost beside himself as he watched her with glee being half carried, half dragged into the room. Oh, she was everything he imagined, at least, in looks. 

Slim figure, pretty face, with light brown hair that curled at the end. Long, delicate hands, fair skin, large green eyes. If her intelligent proved as good as her beautify, they might actually have a chance at this.

Saburo turned his eyes away from her to his brother, and was greatly disappointed in his reaction. Taro seemed irritated and bored. Saburo sighed. As it always was, Taro failed to realize just how much potential this girl had. It was one of his brother's greatest faults, and he supposed, one of his greatest assets, too. Taro was too set on a goal and too codependent for his own good. It served well in battle, this was the reason why Taro was such a good military hero, but it did not quite cross over into politics. In war, Taro could easily win any battle possible. His goal was right in front of him, and the consequences of his actions were set out before him. Kill this person, this defense falls, bomb this area, this move here, that move there, and so on.

Taro was a man of action, which helped him become Emperor in the first place, but not one to consider all the possibilities. This was where Saburo came in; Saburo was Taro's extra set of ears and mind. Of, as Saburo liked to muse to himself, his only brain. Taro was smart, but Saburo was smarter, and they both knew it. Thus, when it came to the girl, Saburo knew Taro was only keeping himself from killing her right than and there because of him.

He wondered if the girl knew that he was saving her.

"Good evening," he said, recording her reaction. Her eyes were a wonderful color of green. Full of life and curiosity, though at the moment, they were glassy with tears, ready to start a waterfall any second now.

Yes, she would win them over. With a face like her's, pretty but not alien or exotic, she could easily win them over.

She kept her eyes on him as he moved next to Taro, making sure to take to remain higher than her, but lower than Taro. In this state of mind, Taro could easily blow, so it was best to keep on him good side. For now, at least.

Yet her eyes did not leave him, even as he took a seat next to his brother. Saburo mind clicked to as he watched her eyes calculating what was going on. In the instant her eyes flicked from him to his brother, he knew she had just figured it out. Oh, this was something! She was smart! She knew exactly what was going on, and her eyes told him everything. What a feat! In that moment, Saburo wanted to turn to her and laugh and shout out, "You know, don't you? Taro is a nothing but a puppet! Yes, it is I who is the real Emperor, not this foolish man beside me. And you know this, don't you, my beauty, my love? You know who has the real power in here, and you figured it out the moment I came up behind you!"

However, he did not say a word, nor did his face reveal any of his thoughts. Unlike her, he had trained his eyes not to betray him.

Still, the fact she was able to communicate all of this through her eyes was astounding.

Yes, this would work. She would win every single person over. Soon, the whole world was going to love her.

This would work.

* * *

Sakura watched as this new man took a seat beside the Emperor. Without trying, nor meaning to, Sakura had already understood what was going on. This new man, this was the one she should be afraid of, though she did not know to what extent. The whole atmosphere of the room had changed, and it leaned toward the man. He walked with an air of power, and a confidence Sakura knew only came from those who had already won. Yet even though he had won, at what she wasn't yet sure of, he seemed to be constantly changing, adapting to each new thing as it came. 

And right now, she was the new thing.

"This is what we have been looking for, Saburo? This girl?" The Emperor asked, inclining his large head toward the man next to him.

The man, Saburo, smiled, scaring Sakura. There was something so terribly wrong and twisted with his smile. Sakura wished she had more memories, for perhaps than she would know what her body was trying to tell her.

Saburo replied softly, in the same voice he used earlier. "She's young, but others have been married younger. She'll do."

Marriage! What in heavens name! Sakura's mouth dropped slightly, hearing them talk to each other as though she was not even standing at their feet, like the prisoner she was.

Taro was looking at her, one eyebrow dipped lower than the other. "What's her name again?" he said.

Sakura closed her mouth in plain defiance, though it was pointless, for Saburo answered, "Sakura. A pretty word, not one I've heard before. Probably a lost language by now."

The fact this Saburo knew her name, and used it so freely, not even with a single honorific attached, humiliated her, degrading her to less than what she was, what Syaoran constantly remaindered her she was; a princess. To be stripped of her title, and have her name stand alone, hurt her more than she knew it should. To let anyone else use her name freely meant something deep within her. Something in her heart? Maybe. From the few memories she had, she knew it meant that she trusted that other person almost to the point of love. After all, didn't Touya let Yuki use his real name? Their friendship was deep and caring.

'_Sakura let this go! You're in another world, things are different here,'_ she reminded herself, though she was really trying to keep from letting her tears escape. No, she would not cry. Not in front of these men.

Yet when she heard her name again, just her name, nothing else, she could not help but think, _'Syaoran-kun still called me a princess, in every world,'_

"Who are you?" the words formed on Sakura's mouth and where out before she could control herself.

Taro and Saburo did not seem to mind her obviousness', for Saburo pleasantly responded, "My beauty, I am Prince Saburo, and this here," he paused, bowed his head toward the Emperor, "...is Emperor Taro, my brother, and your new fiancé."

Sakura's eyes widened in shock. "What!"

Saburo continued unnerved at her outburst, "You are a prefect match in all of this. I personally have been watching you since you and your friends first arrived here days ago." Sakura gaped at him. He knew of their arrival? Did that mean that he knew of the Dimension Witch? In that case, was he really there to help her?

Saburo continued, his words distinguishing each one of her hopes the more he talked. "No one but a three people know the truth about where you came from, where ever that was. Two of them are in this very room, and another, a man by the name of General Kazou. The rest have been taken care of," Sakura did not want to know what he meant by, _'taken care of'_. It chilled her to even think of what he, this ...monster, might have done to whomever else.

Saburo crept from his space next to his brother closer to her. "Do you know how many people have been out searching for you? The other magic sources were interesting, though not by any means as wonderful as you."

Other sources? He must mean Fai and Mokona, Sakura thought, remembering her companions' strange forms of magic. A bit of hope grew in her. _'They must have not been caught,'_ she realized.

"Why did you have to capture me?" Sakura asked, trying to put as much courage in her voice as possible, yet it still came out sounding weak and small to her.

Saburo grinned. "You are a woman. And we needed a woman. Simple." There was an evil glint in his red eyes.

Whatever he meant by that, Sakura did not want to know. "Where's Syaoran-kun?" she asked.

"Who?" Taro looked at his brother.

"She must mean the other one we caught." Saburo continued saying. "His name is Shaorankun? What an ugly name."

Sakura burned with an angry fire. The way these brothers talked was infuriating, like they were having a cup of tea. She wanted to yell at them, to scream to let her go. Yet her rational side refused to let a muscle move. They were the players with all the cards, and all Sakura could do was try to keep herself and Syaoran-kun alive. Fai, Kurogane, and Mokona were safe, yet with them being so far away did not lull her trouble mind. Or stomach.

"We have placed him in one of the Detention Blocks. He might survive, though I doubt it."

"What have you done to him? Why can't you leave us alone!"

"We needed you. It's your fault, really. Had you not run from us, this boy would have never gotten hurt. We could keep him alive," Saburo paused, examining her, "...that is, if you're willing to comply. No matter, really. He is of no use to us. You, however, are."

Saburo brought out a his wand from behind his back. He flicked, and before her every eyes out of thin air came Syaoran. He was not the Syaoran she knew, however, and with a numbing feeling, she realized what she was seeing was just a picture. But the picture burned into her eyes. He was hurt, and badly. Red blood, Sakura did not want to guess who's it was, ran all over him. His face, normally so calm and kind, was scared and horrifed. He was in pain, his lips scruntched over his brown eyes, large fate tear stains down his cheek. The skin around his eyes was blue and shiny, there were red marks around his neck.

Sakura turned away, almost screaming, "Stop that! Stop that!". She put her trembling fingers to her lips, taking deep breaths through her noise. _'Syaoran-kun...I am so sorry...' _

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Saburo flick his wand again, and she knew the image was gone, though she could still see him when she blicked.

"Allow me to put this simply, Sakura. We hold his life in our hands. He will die, unless you give us a reason to prolong his meaningless death." Sakura recongized what tatic Saburo was using. It was the kind Fai used all the time with Kurogane. Saburo picked words he knew would get a rise out of her. And, sadly, it was working.

"Not that I really see why would want him to live," He scuffed, "After all, he is a trick. A filthy thing lacking of magic and reeking of the our silly brothers and sisters on the outskirts. Tricks are dieing species, so one more death is not going to make much of a difference." His words were knives, sharp and piercing. "I suppose we could use him, no, Taro? Put him into an arena with foul beasts, and watch him fight to his death. Would you like that better, Sakura? Would that change anything for him? Would it clear your conscious to help you _believe_ you did something good for this animal?"

Sakura felt tears begin to flow down her cheeks again, and hated herself for it. "Let him go. Just let him go. I'll do what you want." She said her voice devoid of will. Through the blur of water, Sakura's tried eyes raised themselves once more to look, not at Taro, but at Saburo. In his face, she saw a fleeting moment of triumph. Watching her crumble and submit to him gave him that triumphant look. He'd won, just like he knew he would.

Saburo came down to her, and took her hand in his own. "No. We won't let him go." He held her hand the way a brother would, not a monster. "Get ready, my beauty, for soon, you will be a queen"

* * *

Sorta looked out the window, pressing his fingertips into his temples, trying to target the ache. 

This was not good. Not in the least.

Sorta's latest source for his headache came, not from his advisers and contacts watching every detail of this event, but from his very own little cousin, Tomoyo. It was not her personally that brought on the headache, but the news she carried to him. As she retold him the story of what happened to her vividly, he realized just how little his cousin knew of the significance of her random discovery. At first he thought Sorta, you fool, you should have prepared her more.

And than he thought, _'My worst fears have come true.'_

The Emperor was taking a wife.

And not a very willing one, if Tomoyo's story was anything to go on. But a wife none-the-less. And this person, whoever she was, must be someone of extraordinary power, and someone who has something extremely secretive, if the Emperor had to blackmail her to become his wife, which seemed the path he was taking at this very moment. Sorta had heard the rumors at suppertime, the fact that the Emperor had 'officially' started looking for a mate. But the cons of finding a wife so late in his life far outnumbered the pros.

What exactly was the Emperor, or more precisely, what was that damn Prince Saburo, trying to accomplish? Sorta knew their ultimate goal was to once again reunite the Empire into the glory it was a few years ago, when Taro's fame had been at its highest point. But with the different provinces suddenly becoming smarter and beginning to rebel against him, what was the point? _'He needs an heir, for one,'_ Sorta thought. '_Someone to have the families gossip about. Plus to be married to the richest being on the planet would unite some. But what about the rest?'_ Saburo, of course, would train the boy to become a genius, something that Sorta wanted to do everything in his power to stop. One Saburo was enough to deal with, but two?

What was he missing?

Two arms wrapped around his chest, and he felt a warm body pressed up against him from behind.

"What are you thinking about?" Arashi whispered in his ear.

"What Tomoyo told us." He grabbed a hold of one of her hands, pressing it into him. "I can't figure out what Saburo is trying to do. I fear I'm going to loose this."

Arashi hugged him tighter. "There is still time. If this girl is as scared as Tomoyo said, they won't be making any announcement for a few more days."

"Perhaps, and nine months from now that girl is going to be caring the Emperor's child for all we know."

"Don't be so sure that is what they're after. An heir, yes, but right now they need a full grown person."

He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "Why do you say that? What makes you so sure they do not need an heir right now?"

"A baby hardly unites anyone, let alone makes decisions. They need a new figure to place at the top of the crown, someone new for the parties to look at and question."

Sorta smiled. "They need a distraction."

She kissed his cheek, murmuring into his skin. "That's right. And happy that they are going about this in perhaps the wisest and the most foolish way possible."

"How so?" Sorta knew he probably could figure out from her words what she meant, but right now he was too tired, and she was too close, and she seemed to know all the answers. So he let her take control, and tell him things he should have known already. Not that either of them minded.

"They are putting a frighten girl in a place of power. Saburo is counting on the fact that whatever her actions may be, she'll keep eyes off him. But when people are frightened, you don't know quite what they are going to do."

"So you're saying this girl is who we should be watching?"

"Maybe.But that's for you to decided, isn't it?"

"I don't who I am supposed to be watching. I don't even know if any of this is going to work. We need a mircle."

"You might have one, right under your noise. Think of that happy thought." She kissed him, than rolled over onto the bed and fell asleep. Sorta lay awake for a few more moments thinking about her words before he realized how stupid he was without his wife. He curled up beside her, pressed his lips on her bare shoulder, than drifted off after her.


	8. Ch7 Rebellion

Fai pressed the plastic bottle to his lips, pretending to drink. He made sure some of the liquid inside got onto his chin and then made a visible show of wiping it away, while at the same time signaling to Kurogane. Kurogane grunted and glared at him. 

I _get_ it already, stop looking at me, his eyes said.

Fai grinned and put the bottle down. He was almost sure of what the substance was--his memory of chemicals was near perfect, after all his studying, and what they put in his drink was amateurish and somewhat foolish; they clearly underestimated them.

Well, that was fine. Let them go ahead and think that.

He felt the chill of unease go up his spine again, and grinned, feeling drunk with his alertness. It was near intoxicating, this alertness all the time. But Fai could not get too excited, least Kurogane catch wind of his power. It was both a blessing and a curse that Kurogane was so in tuned to others' unease. At the current moment, Fai wanted nothing to do but to knock him out. Of course, that would require him to move, and right now he was so comfortable, on two blankets (one of Kurogane's; he had yet to notice Fai took it) and with Mokona on his stomach.

Mokona was busy bouncing up and down, and when he came down on a particular ticklish spot, Fai let out a small chuckle. This only encouraged Mokona to jump higher in a greater attempt to make Fai laugh.

"Mokona make Fai giggle!" It said, its ears flopping over its eyes.

"Mokona's so cute!" Mokona gave a loud squeal when Fai poked his finger in its belly.

"Will you quit encouraging the pork bun to talk!" Kurogane said loudly. "We need to figure something out."

"Oh, do you now care about the children?"

Fai made sure to avoid Kurogane's eyes so as to not give him any way to gain command of the conversation. It was just one more thing that annoyed Kurogane to no end; Kurogane had to be in control of most everything in his life. By refusing to met his eyes, Fai was sending the simple message of "ha-ha" and "Don't you dare believe you can control me," Kurogane needed constant reminder of this; lucky, Fai was there.

"I want to get out of this world as fast as possible, and the fat bun won't leave without the stupid feather."

"I guess that means we just have to wait."

Fai could almost feel the smoldering heat of the hatred Kurogane was steaming off. "Like hell we do."

"Let's wait for Jiro to come back. Wanna a 'gr-ap'?" Fai tossed him two grapes the size of large marbles.

"They're purple."

"So?"

He tossed them back. "They're purple." He said again, as though that explained everything. "Where is the fatty?"

Kurogane bestowed the affectionate nickname onto their landlord-turned-rescuer a little while ago, after a somewhat hazard greeting. After being in almost complete darkness for a little over two hours, Kurogane, Fai and Mokona had come out of the tunnel to a bright meeting--quite literally.

It took Fai a few seconds while his sight recovered to guess at the reason he did not sense them before they came out of the tunnel. By the time the purple blots in his eyesight had lessoned to an only slightly annoying state, he knew the reason. He felt Kurogane move beside him and heard the slick sound of his sword coming out of its sheath, yet before he could warn him, a voice demanded them to get on the ground.

"Could you repeat that?" Fai said, stalling for time, already planning an escape.

"GET ON THE GROUND!"

"Make me-" Kurogane started before Fai cut him off.

"I think we should do what they say, Kuro-pipi. After all, it seems we haven't left the city at all."

"What!" Kurogane exclaimed.

Fai resisted rolling his eyes. The explanation would have to come later. Right now the more pressing matter was getting out. He gently went down onto his knees, but no further; it was to say, "There. I did what you said. But not totally."

By now, their eyes had adjusted considerably, and while Kurogane twisting his head around to see the tall buildings still looming over them, Fai stared straight ahead at their adversary, which had not only surrounded them in the time for the light to disappear fully, but also pointed various weapons at them. There were a good fourty to fifty men around them of various sizes and backgrounds, all having the same venomous looks on their faces. Their arms gripped their swords, bats, sticks, knives, and ropes until their knuckles were white, anticipating the command to attack--

"STOP! STOP! NO ONE GO FORTH! STAND STILL!"

Both Kurogane and Fai snapped up at the familiar voice. The men around them snarled and swore, but they heeded the spoken order by their leader. Another second or two, and Fai was sure their bloodlust would be too great for anyone to command. As their leader stepped out from the ranks, Kurogane gave a slight noise of surprise.

"Well, hell, if it isn't Jiro,"

The ugly face was just as surprised to see them as they were surprised to see him. Nothing much had changed since their last encounter earlier that day (it seemed much longer to Fai. So much had happened between the hours that it felt like days). The old, thin scare looked even more ghastly in the pale light of darkness, and the oily hair was still slicked back. Carmel-colored teeth could be seen from under the tiny mustache as his mouth widened into a frown.

Jiro walked toward them slowly. Fai noticed for the first time that as he walked, his right leg would give a little more in to gravity than normal.

Fai looked up to the blunt end of the wooden wand Jiro was rudely pointing in his face. A mixture of feelings could be noted ragging battle in his eyes. Somewhere between rage and confusion, Jiro stared down at Fai, his wand arm shaking.

He licked his lips. "I am going tha ask you only once," he stated, the veins in his neck popping out, "How, and why, did you come here?"

"Well," Fai answered briskly, "That depends. Are you going to hurt us?" Jiro's lip quivered in anger, which was the reaction Fai anticipated he would receive.

Kurogane only watched the interaction, his brow at a sharp angle downward. He thankfully did not talk, allowing Fai to take control of the situation.

Jiro leaned downward toward Fai's ear, whispering harshly, "Yer want to get killed? Yer both magic users on **Normal's** land!"

"Users?" Fai repeated, puzzled. He knew that there were only two people that could use magic in their group, and one of them was currently captured. "I'm afraid you must be mistaken,"

Another vein popped out. "MISTAKEN! I can smell magic, and yer both reek of it!"

Fai glanced over at Kurogane, wondering if his alertness had thrown his senses off.

No, no, Jiro was definitely the one mistaken. Kurogane had no magic, he was sure of it, the only way--

"Ah!" Fai relaxed; Mokona! Of course, no wonder Jiro thought Kurogane had magic. Mokona was hidden in Kurogane's coat pocket. The white alien must be the one that was throwing off everyone's senses. Fai had not noticed it for he had been in Mokona's presence for so long. He knew that what Mokona had was not technically magic--at least, not the traditional kind--but here on this world the people had mistaken it to mean magic.

"Who sent you! Why have you come! Out with it!" Jiro was shouting when Fai returned from his mind thoughts. Jiro's wand was now uncomfortably close to Fai's nose.

"Jiro," Fai stared up into the beady eyes. "I'm afraid you have us confused. You see, we were just running away from those that were chasing us." Jiro looked into Fai's eyes for any sign of disbelief. "The men wearing all black, with the round things on their heads." he added, and was pleased when he saw a sense of recognition in Jiro's features. The wand was even removed from his face and than put safely back into a jacket pocket.

Jiro eyes swept the area side to side. "Where's the girl?" he asked.

Unsurprised at the sudden change of questions, Fai answered. "She's been captured," He had a feeling why Jiro was so interested in Sakura (besides her whoring abilities) but kept his mouth shut. Fai could not be sure how smart Jiro expected them to be about Sakura's unnatural powers. For now, he and Kurogane would have to play along. He signaled this to Kurogane, who gave a slight nod of his head.

_'Thank you, fate, you gave me smart people to work with' _he thought, before returning his attension to the man in front of him.

Jiro cursed. He then stood up to his full height and turned around to the men. "Get these two into the chambers!" He turned around back to Fai and Kurogane (Mokona was being very still in Kurogane's pocket), "One magic trick from either of you, and yer heads' off!" He ran his thick finger along his neck to make the point more convincing.

They had been taken away from there, and no one had said a thing, expect for a small debate about whether to blindfold them or not.

"They'll see the hideaway! We'll have to pack up and move all over again. What's to say that they aren't doing a spelly-thing right now?"

"Jiro-sama can detect these things. He'd know! Besides, they've been in the tunnel for two hours-"

_'An extremely education guess,'_ Fai thought, hoping they would decide against the blindfolding. He had been through enough tonight, and was not keen on having to go through one more energy draining activity.

"You two! Quit blabbering! We don't need to blindfold them, anyways! Just give them a good hit."

'_Darn,_'. A second later, a blunt object rapped the top of his head.

A while later (Fai didn't know for sure for there was no light outside to judge by) he had woken up in a moderately cozy nest in the corner of a filthy room. Kurogane was already awake by then, and Mokona hopped onto his stomach. There was some food in a small blue colored dish, along with some liquid in a green bottle. Fai was hesitant to try any of it, for the bump on his head was still quite sore. He did pretend to have a bite or two of the food, if only to help the appearance that they were being truthful. Kurogane understood the game well enough, for reasons Fai decided not to guess.

"How the heck are we still in the damn city? We were walking around for a good two hours in that tunnel!" asked Kurogane.

"Magic."

"Huh?"

"Magic, darling. The tunnel itself was not truly constructed, at least, not in the sense you're thinking, with hammers and nails and such." explained Fai, as Mokona ceased its bouncing.

"What is the point of that?"

"Oh," mused Fai, "Lot's of things, I suppose. If an enemy was chasing you, wouldn't you like to get them held up for two hours doing nothing but wasting their energy? All the while, you make your escape, and take your time going to the end of the tunnel where you're enemy is bound to come out and ambush him." He stated, very matter-of-factly.

"What's it doing in the middle of the city, then?"

"I think you'll have to ask Jiro that," Said Fai just as Jiro himself limped into the room. Mokona quickly dived under Kurogane's cloak before Jiro's beady eyes saw the Dimension creature. He gave them a sour look as he pulled up a stool and sat down on it.

"Well," Jiro breathed, after a moment of silence, "it seems yer were tellin' the truth."

"The truth?" Fai said. "Which part?"

"The girl. She's indeed been captured."

Fai and Kurogane exchanged looks. Fai let out a breath he did not know he'd been holding. Kurogane eyes averted his eyes to the floor.

Fai knew what they were both thinking. "Did you hear anything about the boy?"

"Who?"

Calm down, Fai. Calm down and wait for his answer. "The boy who was with us. His name is Syaoran."

Jiro's scare twisted as his eyebrow rose. "I haven't heard anything of the boy. Only the girl."

"Oh."

Fai sat up, putting his hand underneath his shirt for comfort. He had to remind himself of his nakedness. It was to keep from thinking about might have happened to Little Doggie. The mind truly was a dangerous thing.

Kurogane cracked his knuckles. "What is going on here? This is no ordinary volunteer militia." He grinned. "It's too organized."

If Jiro found the comment funny, his face did not show it. Nor did it show any emotion other than pure frustration. "Where are yer all from? I felt both you--" he jerked his thumb toward Fai, "--and the girl the moment you arrived in this city."

Fai opened his mouth to say something, but Kurogane cut him off. That was fine. After being silent for so long and allowing Fai to direct the situation, Kurogane needed to assert himself that, yes, he still was in control. Fai found himself somewhat grateful at the intrusion, and relaxed back onto the pillows, prepared to follow along and add in the occasional comment to make their story plausible.

"How about you tell us what your planning to do with your little army, and we'll fill you in on our situation?" Kurogane grinned. A challenge.

And from the look on Jiro's face, he took it as such. A few beats of silence passed as he considered Kurogane's offer. "All right," he said, "I'll tell ya. After all, it isn't like we'll be letting yer go now that you've found our little hideaway."

"We'll see."

For a moment, Jiro's eyes widened before he relaxed and let out a yawp of laughter. "Yer a funny one," he motioned for two men by the door to come in. One of them brought a small red box from their pocket. Jiro opened the box and took out a small cigarette. He lit one end of the cig, then took a deep breath.

"We're not simple militia. We're the Rebellion."

"The rebellion?"

"YES!" snarled Jiro before bring his voice back down. "What are ya? Fools?"

"We're travelers from a far, far away place." Fai said. "Enlighten us please."

Jiro gave them a skeptical look, but he continued.

"Fine. Since yer say yer travelers, I might as well start at tha' beginning."

Fai gave him a small smile.

"The Emperor Taro came to the throne 15 years ago, but he had really been in power for almost 20, he just did not come out from his mask till after the old Emperor died."

"How did he get to be Emperor?" Kurogane asked.

Jiro's lip snarled upwards. "No one really knows. Taro says he and his brother Saburo found the old Great One's will, specifically stating that Taro was to be his successor. There were other documents they 'found' but those have mysteriously," Jiro huffed at this part, making sure to impress how believable he thought that was, "disappeared."

"During the first few years of Taro's regime he was just settin' up his pieces. At first, there were the deaths of his major opposition, the brave ones who actually vowed to brin' him down. It was all hush hush, you see, fer no one really knew back then what he was really doing. It was simple, really, even a Normal like those outside could have seen it." He paused, his pupils dilating a bit before returning to their original size, "...at least, they should have."

"Then Emperor Taro," Jiro spat out the name, his face distorted in the aftershock of having the bitter name on his tongue, "started on one of his first programs to 'educate' the Normals--"

"When you say Normals," Fai interrupted, "--you mean Tricks, correct?"

Jiro looked at Fai with loathing, "That degradin' nickname was givin' to those poor people by Prince Saburo, the swine." He huffed again, "Tricks! Like putting salt in a blood wound. Reminding them constantly that they have no magic! That what they do are just simple tricks, simple buffoonery! It's the worst thing to be called, a Trick!"

It took a few seconds of silence to calm the man down. When he continued, his tone had changed, now vibrating a deep sadness from his stomach. "It took only a while before they started to kill off the Normals. Saburo introduced the programs to the Families, most of which supported em'."

"Normals have no magic, thus ther' thought to be sub-human." he sighed, the sadness leaking out through his lips. "Normals began to believe it, too, after a few years. The thoughts were already there, had been for at least a hundred years, so this came as no surprise."

"It was just one more thing to stain the live of Normals with."

"That's when the Rebellion started. It's made up of mostly Normals, but there are a few magicians, too."

"Like you." Kurogane said.

"Like meh." Jiro grinned (Fai cringed), "Ah'm not as powerful as yer little girlie is, but its enough."

"Why are they keeping her?"

"Don't know. She's a pretty girl, though, both in magic n' looks. They will find use for her, one way or another. We're just hoping she won't be forced to use her power. Saburo can do that to some people, ay've heard."

"What would they do with her?" Kurogane growled.

Jiro shrugged, as though the outcome didn't really concern him. "Keep her locked up, kill her, I don't know. We're waiting to hear from our 'friends'--"the scar look as ugly as ever as it was stretched into a grin,"--what exactly they're doing."

Kurogane held himself back from snorting. He found it foolish that this man believed he was in charge of anything. But he did not dare say a word against him for, no matter how silly this Jiro was, he could have them killed. "What friends?"

"High friends in high places, yessir. They be meeting all month long, going over who-knows-what. Some people aren't real happy with his Mightiness and the Prince right now, and they be showing it this month. That's why this month is going ter be the most important month ever. The people could have the moods change, and we're ready for when our friends tell us it's good."

"Good for what?"

The face that Fai swore could not improve its hideousness did just that. "Attack." He then waited a minute to let this information sink in fully before he sat back, pleased with himself. "Now I've filled my part of the bargain. You fill in yours."

Fai and Kurogane exchanged glances, wondering what to make up. Kurogane nodded toward Fai, as though saying, "You do this part. I'm done talking."

"Well..." Fai started, unsure how much he wanted to say. Jiro was too low on the power scale to care much about the authenticity of the story, but he did reveal that he had "high friends", the real people in charge of everything, which made him somewhat important (if only a little bit). If he did not believe them, then most likely he would not let anyone believe them either. Fai had to make sure he said just enough to Jiro to make him happy, but reserve the real stuff for someone who could actually help them get off this hate filled planet.

"We're travelers from a far off land." he began, "looking around for a good doctor."

Jiro sniffed. "Why you looking around for a doctor here?"

Uh oh. Mistake. Come on, Fai, think of a good reason. "One of our group was caught up in a magical explosion."

His beady eyes widened. "Explosion?"

Yes, good, good, he's buying it. "Yes, I work with different potions," Very accurate, in fact. At least this way if they thought there was something odd to his story, he could prove otherwise. "The girl, Sakura, was caught up in this explosion and I could not help her."

"Yer-You- a magic doctor?"

"Well, let's just put it this way--if I could not help her, then no one else could either. So we came here to find help."

Again he sniffed. "She seemed fine to meh. Powerful, but fine."

"She falls into a coma when she works too hard." Fai said, making sure he was adding a slight tone of authority to his voice. Jiro was buying it slowly but surely; to let up now would undo everything. "If she falls into one of these comas, she might not wake up ever again." he added gravely.

"That might not be a bad thing," Jiro responded, "--if Saburo gets a hold of her, it'd be better if she died."

"No, it wouldn't." Fai said. "She can not die here. Not in this city." Not on this planet, he wanted to add. Instead he leaned in, whispering, "Her power is usual, to say the least. It can not be left alone. It must be--" he paused, looking into Jiro's eyes.

The pupils were widening. At the current moment, he could find no deception. Had Fai used his powers, he was sure he'd be able to see Jiro's true form, but as it was, he would not dare.

"What?" Jiro asked. "What must it be?"

"Sealed." Fai felt a strange chill go down his back as he said this. This part of the lie was not easy to tell, but it was the best that he could come up with. A brief image of Chi and Ashura illuminated in his mind, their faces outlined in a thin white line. He could feel their presence in him, radiating within his bones, still weak, but there.

He shivered a small bit, praying his voice would not falter. Stop that Fai, he thought, stop that right now. Concentrate on what in front of you.

Jiro was deep in thought. His grin had long vanished since Fai began the fable. He had turned a sausage-like finger up to his temple, pressing it in.

He opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by a deep voice from the doorway. "Jiro-sama, we have received an update from our 'friend'. We have also intercepted some e-notes from one of the detention centers in Government Tower number 7,"

Jiro spun around. "Is the update from Chuu?"

The man nodded, and Jiro put a hand on his knee and pushed himself up. He snapped his leg quickly in front of him to hurry to the doorway, despite his limp. Before he left, he gave one last look, filled with deep foreboding feeling, to Fai and Kurogane. Then he was gone.

Kurogane and Fai waited patiently for over an hour as they listened to the sounds outside their little room. There were several minutes of shuffling feet, and of the guard outside the door, supposedly watching them to make sure they did not escape, talking with his fellow mates. It was another half hour before everything had quieted down.

"It's safe now." Kurogane whispered, digging Mokona out of his pocket ("Mokona couldn't breathe!" it hiccupped). "The guard's breathing has been deep and steady for a half hour. He's in deep sleep now."

Fai nodded, "So, what do you think?"

"Jiro's an idiot."

"Besides that."

Kurogane's brows went into a dip. "They're preparing for an attack any day now. We can probably sneak by them and get the kids, if they're still alive by then."

"I'm sure Sakura's fine. The people on this world don't have such a loathing for her because of her magic. Plus she's a woman. They won't kill her for a while. She's too good for them not to use." Fai paused, wondering how he should go about the next question. "And Syaoran?" It was best to be blunt.

"He might be dead by then." Though the words were heartbreaking to say, Kurogane's voice did not waver once as he spoke them. Instead each word was said fully, each syllable pronounced with a deep understanding, and Fai knew Kurogane was feeling as sick as he was.

Feeling it was best to turn away from the subject of death, Fai turned to the subject of Jiro. "He's a strange man. Throughout the whole conversation he was using two different accents."

"So what?"

"He was trying to sound educated. He kept on switching up words, like 'yer' and 'you'."

"Who gives a shit?" Kurogane had learned this term on one of the other dimensions and was rather fond of it.

The corners of Fai's lips turned upwards. "It means, as long as we appeal to his 'educated' side, he'll let us do anything. As long as he is not smart enough to realize it."

"If that happens, I'll knock him out."

"You're a brute, aren't you." Fai cocked his eyebrow up in amusement. "All big bones and muscles, right?"

Kurogane did not speak to him for the rest of the time, expect once to reclaim his pillow that was under Fai's ribs. "You got two seconds before I slice your arm off."

"Good night, Kuro-wuggy."

As Fai's body called to sleep to claim it, Fai's mind whirled over the past events, examining every detail possible. The images of Chi and Ashura still glowed in his mind's eyes.

He put his hand under his shirt on his bare back for comfort, shaking slightly when all he felt was cold skin. It was easier now, reminding himself the mark was gone. Though the feeling of nakedness did not leave, nor did he doubt it would ever leave.

_'Troubled dreams plague thy somber slumber tonight, young knight,'_ the line of a long forgotten song whispered within him. '_Sleep well, Fai_' he thought, ignoring the irony in that statement.


End file.
